Maxamorphosis
by ironyheartsap
Summary: Max learns surprising secrets regarding her DNA; it is partly composed of Vampire DNA. Soon it's mutating out of control, and Max is slowly changing into a vampire. Will the Cullens be able to help? & what about the Volturi? Better/full summary inside.FAX
1. Brain Attack

**Maxamorphosis: A Twilight/Maximum Ride Fanfic**

_**Max and the Flock have defeated Itex and life is good. Of course, that would never last. Max starts to have those Brain Attacks again, only much more frequent and much more severe. What's wrong with Max now? Everyone fears the worst: an expiration date. But it's Maximum Ride we're talking about, so something much more interesting must happen. Max always thought that she was human with 2% avian DNA mixed in, but she was wrong. She doesn't just have human and bird DNA, she has some vampire DNA thrown in, too. And now that vampire part of the DNA is mutating, slowly over writing the rest of her DNA. Can the Flock find a way to stop it? Or will Max's DNA continue to mutate out of control? And of course, the Flock meets a group of interesting people who also aren't quite human themselves. Will the Cullens be able to help Max? Or is it too late? And what happens when the Volturi become interested in Max?**_

***This takes place before MAX (because that's when I thought of the story line) but Max and the Flock are a few years older; and for the Twilight characters, it takes place post Breaking Dawn.***

**Disclaimer: I do not own Maximum Ride or Twilight. **

Chapter One: Brain Attack

"Where are we going, Max?" Fang asked me.

Where were we going? Hmm, that's a good question. I wasn't really sure. I just had some sort of feeling that was guiding me. But I wasn't about to tell Fang that. "It's a surprise," I cleverly replied.

Fang retorted, "You have no clue where we're going, do you?"

"Of course I do!" I insisted.

"Yeah, I'm sure you do," Fang said with a small smile.

I frowned. Only Fang was able to see through my disguise of confidence… or at least confidence with directions. "Okay, I don't know _exactly_ where we are going," I said. "But I just have this feeling, you know?"

Fang just looked at me strangely. "No, not really."

I glared at him. "I'll know when we get there."

Fang muttered something that I didn't quite catch. I sighed and flew a little further ahead. I wasn't sure exactly where we were going, and I hadn't heard from the Voice in a couple days. It was just like the Voice to pop into my mind when I didn't want to hear from him (or was it a her???) and evade me when I needed his input. Murphy's Law, I suppose.

We continued flying for awhile. The sun was starting to set now. The little ones were probably hungry and getting tired. I was about to tell them to start looking for a good place to land when a searing pain in my head erupted.

I felt my wings fold and my body go limp. I was falling, falling, falling… falling fast. It hurt too much though to think about falling, or even to worry about going SPLAT on the ground. It hurt too much to call out, it hurt too much to try to flap my wings.

I felt somebody grab me. I wasn't falling anymore. Another person grabbed my other arm. I heard worried voices, but my head hurt too much to register them.

Soon I was back on the ground. I curled up into a ball with my hands over my head. I tried to ignore the pain, but that was impossible. So instead I concentrated on my breathing. In, out, in, out, in, out…

I didn't know how much time passed. Time had no meaning when I had one of my brain attacks. Slowly the pain ebbed and I became aware of my surroundings.

I was in a forest. Fang was sitting next to me, his face blank. Iggy and Gazzy were by the fire. Nudge was sitting near me, her face full of concern. Angel had Total on her lap, her face, too, showing concern.

It was over. I thought about my most recent brain attack. They were becoming more and more frequent lately. And of course the Voice hasn't said anything about them. Maybe the brain attacks were the result of my new abilities. After all, that's when they fist started, when I first started hearing the Voice. But I hadn't heard from the Voice in days…

"You okay?" I Fang asked me.

"Yeah," I said. "I'll be fine."

The rest of the Flock came towards me making sure I was okay. I assured them all that I was fine. Okay, I wasn't exactly _fine_, but I was better. And they didn't need to know that.

Fang and I were by the fire. The rest of the Flock were asleep. There was an awkward silence between the two of us. Finally Fang spoke.

"Do you have any idea what that was about?" Fang asked me.

"No," I replied. "I didn't hear anything from the Voice…" I let my voice waver. I started to think about my most recent brain attack. There was something different about it, something I couldn't quite place.

Fang looked me directly in the eye. I stared right back at him. "Max, is something wrong?"

"No!" I assured him. Fang didn't look convinced. "I'm fine. It was just a fluke, Fang."

"No, it wasn't," Fang retorted. "And you know that. This is –what, the third one in a week? And they're getting worse, I can tell."

I wasn't sure what to say. Leave it to Fang to be completely blunt and strike the heart of the matters. No need to waste time dancing around the subject.

"Yes," I softly said. "They're getting worse. But I haven't heard anything from the Voice. Maybe I'm just developing a new ability or something…"

"We should take you to a doctor," Fang said.

I laughed. A doctor! Ha, they would have no clue what to make of me. "Yeah, like I'm going to a doctor. They wouldn't be able to make heads or tails of me. They would probably just assume that whatever these brain attacks are, well, that they are just normal."

"But they're not…"

"That's my point!" I paused. "Besides, I really don't like hospitals or doctors…"

"I know, Max, but you need to do something."

"No, I don't, Fang. Just drop it, okay?"

"Fine," Fang said. "But if it happens again, we _are_ taking you to a doctor," I started to protest, but Fang cut me off, "whether you like it or not."

"Okay," I grumbled.

Fang smiled at me. "Go to sleep, I'll take first watch tonight."

Normally I would argue, but tonight I was too tired. I lay down and fell asleep instantly.

**Okay, how was that? The next chapter the Cullens will be introduced. I want to mention where I got this idea from. I was reading one of the numerous Twilight/Maximum Ride fanfics and it occurred to me that no matter how strong and fast the Flock are, the Cullens will always be stronger and faster. Now I like Max and the Flock, and I didn't like that they were at a disadvantage. So I started thinking, how could the Flock become just as strong and fast as vampires? I didn't want them to be changed into a vampire, well at least not the normal way. Then I thought, what if Max's DNA wasn't just composed of human and bird DNA, but of Vampire DNA too? Obviously Max doesn't drink blood or anything else that would be vampire-ish, but what if the Vampire part of her DNA was dormant during the first books? Maybe her DNA is mutating out of control, sort of turning her into a vampire? For now it's just going to be Max with the Vampire DNA, but I might change that later. Anyways, I hope you liked it. Fang is a little OOC, I know. But it was hard to think of a way to start the story. The next chapters will be better. Reviews are always appreciated... and plus they make me motivated to write quicker! Thanx for reading!**

**Random Smiles/ Quotes of the Day:D**

"If stupidity got us into this mess, then why can't it get us out?" _~Will Rogers_

"A common mistake that people make when trying to design something completely foolproof is to underestimate the ingenuity of complete fools." _~Douglas Adams_

"Never argue with an idiot. They drag you down to their level then beat you with experience." _~Jawaad Abdullah_

You know, a long time ago being crazy meant something. Nowadays everybody's crazy." _~Charles Manson_

"Contrariwise," continued Tweedledee, "if it was so, it might be; and if it were so, it would be; but as it isn't, it ain't. That's logic." _~Lewis Carroll, __Through the Looking-Glass_


	2. Trip to the Hospital

**Okay, here's the next chapter! Thanx everyone who reviewed for the last chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Maximum Ride, you should know the drill by now...**

**Chapter Two: A Trip to the Hospital**

**Max's POV**

I had finished eating my breakfast. There is kind of a limit of what you can eat while in the forest in the middle of nowhere. We were 't hungry enough to eat rats or some other animal cooked over an open fire. But we did have granola bars and popcorn. Okay, it's not the breakfast of champions, but it's still healthy. Popcorn has fiber in it, right? It's like grits, but with high self esteem.

I was feeling much better after yesterday's brain attack. I wasn't sure why all of the sudden I was getting these brain attacks. And they are different than the ones I had years ago. I sort of guessed that before, but last night removed any doubt from my mind. They are much, much worse and more frequent. And it sort of feels like _burning_. It was odd. I couldn't put the pieces of the puzzle together.

Fang looked at me and asked, "You okay?"

Why can't that guy ever speak in full sentences? Would it kill him to say, "Are you okay, Max?" Just two extra words couldn't hurt, right?

"Yeah," I said, moving on past Fang's incapability to speak in complete sentences. He didn't look really convinced. "I was just thinking, Fang." Fang gave a shrug that said, "If you say so."

We started to pick up our things. I was antsy for some reason. I had all sorts of energy bottled up inside me. "Hey, Fang?" I asked. "Wanna spar?" Fang looked at me strangely. "Well, we haven't really been practicing or anything lately. If somebody- or something- came for us, well we wouldn't want to be out of touch, you know?" I paused. "Plus I bored and have like a ton of extra energy. Somehow I don't think the tree would be as good of as an opponent as you…On second thought…" I said letting my voice trail of.

"Fine," Fang said with a hint of annoyance in his voice. But he smiled anyway. It had been awhile since we had sparred together. It would be fun, and we did need to keep our skills sharp. The rest of the Flock gathered around and watched as Fang and I got into our positions.

We circled each other for a minute or so, each waiting for the other to strike first. Finally I got tired of waiting and attacked. Fang easily dodged my hand, and came around to attack me. I blocked his attack quickly. We were in full fighting form now. We were attacking, blocking, and dodging, and jumping over and over.

Fang went to punch me but I grabbed his fist instead. Fang's eyes widened slightly in surprise. I was surprised too. I had moved faster than I ever had. Fang was able to work his way out of my grasp.

Before you could say "maximum" I had Fang pinned down on the ground. I released him and stepped back. Wow. How did I do that? I had moved fast; really, really _fast. _I must have developed another ability or something. Super speed on the ground and while flying. Cool.

"Wow, Max!" Nudge shouted. "That was amazing! I mean, you were like so super fast! I blinked once and you were like feet away when-" Nudge stopped rattling on when Iggy put his hand over her mouth. Luckily she took the cue to shut up.

"What was that, Max?" Fang asked calmly.

I wasn't sure what to say. I wasn't sure what happened. I wasn't sure of much anymore, I realized. "I don't know, Fang."

"_You don't know?_" Fang asked with sarcasm_. Hey_, I wanted to say, _sarcasm is my area of expertise. _"You just moved faster than like the speed of sound, Max."

"I know!" I exclaimed. "But I don't know how I did it."

_You are developing new abilities, _the Voice said.

_Are you done with the silent treatment now, Voice? _I asked. Then I thought about what he said. _New abilities? That's why I can move really, really fast?_

"Max?" Fang said, obviously seeing the blank look on my face.

"One sec, Fang," I said. "The Voice decided to come back after his hiatus."

Unsurprisingly, Fang didn't reply. Surprisingly, the Voice did. _It is more complicated than that, Maximum._

_What do you mean, more complicated? _I asked, getting angry.

_Your DNA is mutating by itself now. And it's mutating out of control._

_What?! Can't you stop it? _I didn't know a whole lot about DNA and genetics and stuff, but I had picked up enough to know that DNA mutating out of control wasn't a good thing.

_No, I cannot._

_Is there anyway to stop it?_

_No, there isn't. _I almost thought I hear something that resembled sadness in the Voice's tone. _I'm sorry, Max, but there is nothing I can do. _

I thought everything over. Okay, my DNA was now mutating by itself out of control, I was getting new abilities, and I kept having brain attacks. _Wait, are the brain attacks related to the whole DNA mutating out of control thing? _I asked the Voice.

_Yes, they are._

_Can you stop those?_

_No, I cannot. They brain attacks, as you call them, are not my doing. They are the result of the transformation of your DNA._

_Oh. _Well that sucked. Not only is my DNA mutating out of control, but I get killer headaches because of it.

"The Voice said that-" I started to tell the Flock but was cut off when another brain attack started. It was kind of a speak of the devil kind of thing. I should never had thought about the brain attacks.

This one was even worse, if that was at all possible. I fell to my knees and I grasped my head. I squeezed my eyes shut, blocking out the light. I felt tears on my cheeks. I heard voices around me, but I couldn't comprehend what they were saying. I felt somebody pick me up. And after that, the pain was too intense for me to be aware of anything happening around me.

**Fang's POV**

I had just finished sparring with Max. She had beaten me without barely breaking a sweat. Normally we were both equal opponents, for the most part, but not this time. My ego was taking a serious kick that Max had beaten me so easily. I immediately regretted thinking that. I hoped Angel wasn't reading my mind. I didn't need her to tell Max what I had thought, 'cause she'd just call me a sexist pig. It wasn't just that fact that Max was a girl that beat me that bothered me, but that anybody had beat me. Lately I hadn't lost a fight. Although Max and I haven't sparred in a long time. But last time we did, I let her win. **(Yeah Fang, you keep thinking that.:)** But to be fair to me, Max was really, really fast. Maybe she had gotten another ability?

I became aware of Nudge going on and on about how fast Max was. Luckily, Iggy got Nudge to shut up. That gave me the opportunity to talk. "What was that, Max?" I asked, trying to keep my voice level and calm. I think it worked, but I couldn't be too sure.

It was clear Max was thinking of how to answer. "I don't know, Fang," she answered.

"_You don't know?_" I asked her, my voice full of sarcasm. "You just moved faster than like the speed of sound, Max."

"I know!" I exclaimed. "But I don't know how I did it."

Okay, now I felt kind of bad. I shouldn't have been quite so mean to Max. But I was secretly worried. Yesterday the brain attack, today Max is moving as fast as Superman. What next?

I was about to say something when I looked at Max. Her face wore the blank look she only had when the Voice was talking to her. "Max?" I asked, making sure she was okay.

"One sec, Fang," Max replied. "The Voice decided to come back after his hiatus."

I turned around and leaned on a tree. I wasn't sure how long Max's conversation with the Voice would be, so I decided to get comfortable. A few minutes passed when I saw Max fall to the ground on her knees. She was grasping her head. There were tears on her cheeks. It was another brain attack, a very bad one by the looks of it.

"Grab your stuff, guys," I said, taking charge. I was the second oldest, the second in command. I was the one that has to take care of the others when Max is unable to do so. Angel, Gazzy, Nudge, and Iggy grabbed their bags. "Nudge and Iggy, can you two grab Max's and my bag?" The two of them went and grabbed the two remaining bags without question.

I walked over to Max and gently picked her up. "Come on," I said. I started walking in the direction I knew there was a town. It was named after some eating utensils, if I remembered correctly. Spoons, Knives, Forks? I wasn't sure of the name, but I was sure there was a town there. And where there's a town there should be a hospital. Or at least that was my reasoning.

"Fang, where are we going?" Nudge asked. Luckily Nudge didn't keep going on and on. Actually, she hadn't said a word since was talking about how fast Max had been. At least Nudge knew when to keep quiet.

"I remember seeing a town not far from here," I replied. "There should be a hospital there." I kept on walking through the forest.

"Wouldn't it be easier to fly there?" Iggy asked, obviously not enjoying walking through the forest. Not that I would blame him. Walking through the forest probably wasn't easy for him, and this forest was completely full of trees, bushes, broken branches, hanging branches, and other obstacles.

"Maybe," I said. "But the town isn't far from here. We can't just fly into the hospital."

"Why would it matter?" Iggy asked, irritated. "There gonna notice the wings right away."

I didn't respond to Iggy. At the moment I was worried about Max. These brain attacks were coming more and more often, and I was pretty sure they were getting worse and worse.

Iggy said something else, but I didn't hear him. "Fang! Earth to Fang!" Iggy shouted.

"What?" I asked, annoyed.

"Are you sure going to the hospital is the best idea?" Iggy asked. "I mean it didn't really work out so well the last time…"

I glared at Iggy, momentarily forgetting that he couldn't see me. I didn't need to be reminded of the time when Max was forced to take me to the hospital after Ari nearly killed me. And then that b*witch Anne posed as an FBI agent to get us to trust her, and we were almost captured again because of it.

"I don't know if it's the best idea, Iggy," I said. "But it's the _only_ idea. We have to do something." Iggy only nodded in reply.

I don't know how long we walked. I wasn't exactly keeping track of time. Finally we came to a trail with a sign that pointed to a town called Forks. Forks, yeah that was the name of the town. I knew it was named after something you eat with.

Within a few minutes we got to the hospital. The nurses immediately saw me with Max and then we were surrounded by people. There was no turning back now.

"What happened?" one of the nurses asked me.

Crap. I hadn't thought of a cover story. Max would already have told them some bogus story and have them eating out of the palm of her hand. I would never be as good as Max at this leader thing.

"Uh, I don't know," I said. Lame, I know, but it was the truth. The nurse looked at me strangely. It was apparent that she didn't believe me. I guess I didn't blame her. I probably wouldn't trust me either just by looking at me. "All of the sudden she fell to the ground and clutched her head. She hasn't said or done anything since."

"Okay, when did it happen?" a different nurse asked me. And yet another nurse took Max from my arms and but her on a gurney. I started to protest, but I knew it wasn't worth it. And I would be right by Max if they attempted anything. We would be able to take these nurses and doctors… or at least I hoped.

"About a half an hour ago," I said. I realized that they would wonder why it had taken a half an hour to get Max to the hospital. I explained further, "We were in the forest camping. Spring break, you know? It took awhile to walk here."

The nurse nodded. Good, she bought my explanation. "Okay, were are your parents?"

Parents… that was going to be tricky to answer. I just blurted out the first thing I thought of. "We're here by ourselves. We weren't exactly supposed to go camping. Our parents are on vacation, in Arizona. We were suppose to stay home, but it was so _boring, _you know? So we decided to go camping. Oh, you're not going to tell our parent's are you?" I felt like an idiot. It was necessary, though. I needed to act like a regular stupid teenager. God, Max was so much better at this.

"We'll need to call your parents, but I'll leave it to you to tell them where you were," the same nurse said. I tried to hide a smile as I dropped my eyes and act disappointed. "Okay, what is your name?"

"Nick Ride," I said, using the name Max gave me when we were in Virginia.

"Your girlfriend?" she asked, pointing towards Max. Whoa, _girlfriend_? Me and Max? Luckily I was good at hiding my emotions, because I decided it would be better to play around with the whole boyfriend/girlfriend thing. And I guess I'd be lying if some part of me didn't want it to be true…

"Max Ride," I said. They were surprised that we shared the same last name, but they didn't ask anything about it.

"What about them?" the nurse asked, pointing to the rest of the flock.

"They're, uh, my brothers and sisters," I said. I saw open disbelief in their faces. That's not surprising, since we all look completely different, well expect Angel and Gazzy. So I explained further, "we're adopted."

They all nodded in understanding. "Okay, we're going to have to ask you to have your brothers and sister stay here." I was about to argue, but the nurse continued, "you can come with her and you two will be right across the hall." I was still hesitant, and she must have noticed because she said, "it will be okay. They'll be safe, I promise." She smiled a professional smile that pretty much said, "Trust me. It will okay. We won't capture you and do horrible experiments on you without your consent. I promise." But from practice I knew not to trust anyone outside the Flock, well not counting Mrs. Martinez and Ella.

_Fang, it's okay. I can't get anything out of the ordinary from her mind,_ Angel said in my mind. _And we need to help Max._

_Okay, Angel,_ I replied, _you guys stay here. Iggy's in charge. Stay alert, okay?_

_Okay Fang, _Angel said and I felt her leave my mind.

"Okay," I said. Angel, Gazzy, Nudge, and Iggy went to go towards the sitting area, and I followed the nurse. I was led into a room and the nurse brought Max in. I sat down on a chair. I was tired. It had been an exhausting day. First the sparring match, then Max's brain attack, then carrying Max to the hospital, and then trying to answer their questions as unconsciously as possible.

And now a doctor should be coming in any minute, and he'll no doubt figure out right away that we aren't exactly human. I wasn't sure how I was going to handle that. I guess I never realized how difficult it was being the leader, even after the Flock kind of split up for awhile. I really hoped Max would be okay. I wasn't sure I could handle being the leader.

The door opened, stopping my thoughts. The doctor was young. Great, a newbie. I hoped he was good, for Max's sake. Something about the doctor was off, but I couldn't put my finger on it. And then his eyes… they were a brilliant shade of gold.

The doctor had a chart in his hand, and came in and introduced himself. "Hello. I'm Doctor Cullen," he said with a smile.

**~Okay, I hope you liked it. This chapter was longer than I thought it would be. I was going to split into two chapters, but I did promise that in the next chapter the Flock would meet the Cullen's. So I kinda told the truth. But really this time, the next chapter will have the Flock and the Cullen's. I might add the Cullen's POV too, if you want. Oh, and about the whole sparring thing, I wanted a way to show that Max has new super speed (remind you of some not-so-human-people???). I didn't want them to get into a fight with Erasers or Flyboys (since Itex is supposed to be destroyed, I might think about them rising from the ashes though... maybe they're affiliated with the Volturi???) and I definitely did NOT want the Flock fighting the Cullen's; so I thought of Max and Fang sparring. They would still need to practice, right? Let me know what you think about that section (and the whole story in general) if you don't mind, since I am not sure if I like it or not. I am not that good at writing fighting scenes. And do you think Fang is a little OOC? Or do you think that's how Fang would act under those circumstances? And thank you again everybody who reviewed! It's so much more fun to write when I know that somebody will actually read what I'm writing... and that somebody is a person I'll never meet so I don't have to worry about looking stupid. That's one of the reason's I love fanfiction so much. Normally I don't like people to read my writing, because then I have to face them. You know? But chances are I'll never meet you guys, and even if I did the chances are astronomical that you would recognize me as ironyheartsap/ amada. Anyways, it's late and I'm tired, so I'll end here. I'll try to update again soon. Reviews are always appreciated! [Hint. Hint.] And like I've said before, if you let me know about your story, I'd gladly review. I am always looking for good fanfics to read. Even trade, right? Review for review!**

**~Amada**

**Random Smiles/ Quotes of the Day:D**

*Programming today is a race between software engineers striving to build bigger and better idiot-proof programs, and the Universe trying to produce bigger and better idiots. So far, the Universe is winning. _~Anonymous_

*Time is a great teacher, but unfortunately it kills all its pupils ... _~Louis Hector Berlioz_

*Never take life seriously. Nobody gets out alive anyway. _~Anonymous_

*EXTRA! EXTRA! GET YOUR NEWSPAPER! TODAY'S STORY: Energizer Bunny arrested, charged with battery! _~part Anonymous, part me_


	3. Bad Feelings

**The disclaimer, like always: I do not own Maximum Ride or Twilight. Oh, and a quick flashback for those of you (and myself) who couldn't remember how the last chapter ended. How could a person forget how the last chapter of their own story ended, you might be thinking. Well I have brain atrophy (a shrinking brain, literally… I sometimes sing Pinky- and the Incredible Shrinking Brain, Brain, Brain… I'm a weird geek, I know, but I have to find humor somehow.) not to mention the spots (my sister and I both have these spots on our brains that the doctors have no clue what they are… we sometimes call ourselves the polka-dotted sisters.) But anyways, on with the Story!**

_And now a doctor should be coming in any minute, and he'll no doubt figure out right away that we aren't exactly human. I wasn't sure how I was going to handle that. I guess I never realized how difficult it was being the leader, even after the Flock kind of split up for awhile. I really hoped Max would be okay. I wasn't sure I could handle being the leader._

_The door opened, stopping my thoughts. The doctor was young. Great, a newbie. I hoped he was good, for Max's sake. Something about the doctor was off, but I couldn't put my finger on it. And then his eyes… they were a brilliant shade of gold._

_The doctor had a chart in his hand, and came in and introduced himself. "Hello. I'm Doctor Cullen," he said with a smile._

Chapter Three: Bad Feelings

_Fang's POV_

The doctor, who apparently was named Dr. Cullen, flipped through the chart quickly and said, "Nick Ride, isn't it?"

I nodded and said, "Yes." There was something about guy that bugged me… and it wasn't just because he was wearing a white coat. There was something about him that was off, something dangerous. I mentally shook my head. This guy looked so harmless, and seemed pretty nice so far (I mean he hasn't tried to dissect us or anything). Maybe I was just imagining it. It was pretty stressful to be in a hospital after everything, and it didn't help that something was really wrong with Max. So it must be my imagination, right? This guy didn't look like he would, or could, hurt a fly. But then again, it's always the quiet ones that you'd never suspect…

Dr. Cullen smiled a brilliant smile. For some reason it sent chills down my spine. "Um, what happened…" Dr. Cullen asked, then paused, looking for the appropriate word, "sister?" He said sister in a way that questioned if Max was my sister.

"Yeah, my sister. Max. We're adopted, though," I added. "And I don't know what happened to her. All of the sudden she was on the ground grasping her head."

Dr. Cullen nodded, taking in the information. He scribbled something in that chart before speaking again. "Okay, Nick, has Max ever had any episodes like this?"

I hesitated. What should I tell him? Yeah, Max has had brain attacks like this, but it was a couple years ago and her mind had to make room for an unwanted and annoying voice? That we were the results of genetic experiments and that her DNA might be unraveling and an expiration date might appear any minute? Dr. Cullen must have noticed my hesitation, because he gently said, "Nick, if you don't tell me, I can't help your sister."

I knew he was right. I started to tell him of Max's previous brain attacks, leaving out some details, of course, "Yeah, this has happened before. She calls them brain attacks. They haven't happened in years, though. Then all of the sudden Max started getting them again, but more frequently, and they're more severe."

Dr. Cullen contemplated this and wrote something in the chart again. "You are adopted, you said?" he asked. I just nodded. "So you don't know of any medical history in the family?"

Uhhh, that would be a no, considering we were genetically altered in by some mad scientists. I decided to go with a simple "no" though. Dr. Cullen nodded. He nods a lot. Maybe he has some sort of problem with his neck. I heard Angel laughing in the background. I mentally shouted at her, _Angel, get out of my mind! _I wondered how long she had been in my mind. Had she heard- I stopped that though, because if she didn't, she would have read it now.

_Sorry, Fang._ Angel replied, _it's just that I want to know what's going on, and they wouldn't let us in there._

Aw, I couldn't yell at Angel for that. She was just worried about Max, like we all were. So instead I told her, _As soon as I know something, I'll let you know. I promise. _Then I added for safe measure, _And don't go playing around in anyone else's mind, either._

_Okay, Fang, _Angel grimly added, and I felt her leave my mind.

"Nick," Dr. Cullen said in an inquisitive sort of way.

"Oh, sorry, Dr. Cullen," I said. I was just guessing he said something when I was talking to Angel.

"Don't be," he said. "But I need to know if Max has any other medical problems."

I wanted to say, well if being part bird counts as a medical problem, then yes. But I just said, "No, she doesn't." If I told him that, he'd probably think I'm crazy and have me admitted into the psyche ward.

"Okay, I'll start with a simple examination and see if I find anything," Dr. Cullen said. Oh, you'll find something all right.

He got one of those ear thermometers and gently took Max's temperature. "Hmm, it's a bit low," Dr. Cullen said. "Does she normally run low?"

"Yes," I answered. Dr. Cullen just nodded, again. Boy, that guy is starting to nod more than a bobble-head.

Then Dr. Cullen took out his stethoscope and listened to Max's heart, and then lungs. Pure astonishment covered the doctor's face. "What," he started to say, but couldn't finish his sentence. A moment later, he turned towards me and asked, "Do you know that your sister has a very irregular heart beat and air moving through areas where it shouldn't, no _couldn't_, be?"

Hmm, not too bad. I expected Dr. Cullen to freak out a bit more. "Uh," I started, "yeah."

"You do?" he asked calmly.

"Yes," I said. For a while Dr. Cullen didn't say anything. It was one of those long, awkward silences. Then he finally spoke.

"Okay, Nick, I think I need the real story," Dr. Culled said. "And all of it, too, please."

For a moment I said nothing. I had to decide, here and now, if I would tell Dr. Cullen about us. If I did, there was absolutely no turning back. But if I didn't, who knows what would happen to Max? I nodded.

"Max is ninety-eight percent human, and two percent bird," I said as nonchalantly as I could.

Dr. Cullen just stood there, as still as a statue, staring at me. I mean, he wasn't moving _at all_. I couldn't see any muscles twitching, his chest rising as he breathed, his eyelids closing and opening, his body gently swaying just centimeters… no movement of any kind. Most people would just think he was just simply being still, but with my raptor vision I saw, or rather I didn't see, that he wasn't moving like a normal person would. A bad feeling rose in my chest. I was right, before, when I thought something was off about this doctor. There was something definitely something up with him. Something that might be dangerous. Oh, God, have I just made a humongous mistake?

Dr. Cullen regained himself, and nodded (yet again). "I guess that would explain the irregular heart beat and the air moving lower than it should, air pockets, right?" he asked.

This time it was my turn to be surprised. I just blinked. How did this guy know so much about human-avian-hybrid anatomy? I immediately thought to Angel, _Angel, I know I told you not to go reading people's minds, but can you read this doctor's? There's something about him…_

_Sure, Fang…_ Angel said.

"Nick," Dr. Cullen said, "are you and your brothers and sisters like Max?"

I wasn't sure how to answer. I wasn't going to sell out the rest of the Flock. It could be a trap, and I didn't want them to get hurt. A small part of my mind thought, _if it was a trap then Dr. Cullen wouldn't have to ask if we were like Max; and they probably would have already captured us._ I ignored it, though. Before I could answer, Angel came back into my mind with her results.

_Angel, what did you find?_ I asked.

_Fang, _Angel said, her voice shaky in my head. Whatever she found, it wasn't good. _Fang, he's a vampire. Dr. Cullen is a vampire._

**Okay, sorry to end this chapter here, but I have other things to do. I'll try to update again soon, but it may be awhile. And thanx to everyone who reviewed! And to **_**for the love of **_**Iggy for some of the following quotes! Reviews are greatly appreciated, as always! Oh, and happy spring, everyone! Even though it might snow here in the Chicagoland area, the flowers are blooming and the birds are singing after their vacation down south!**

**~Amada**

**Random Quotes/Smiles of the Day:D**

"I know I'm never going to understand women. I'll never understand how you can take boiling hot wax, pour it onto your upper thigh, rip the hair out by the root, and still be afraid of a spider." _~Some random guy  
_  
"The difference between genius and stupidity is; genius has its limits." _~Albert Einstein_

"I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it." _~Anonymous_

"You laugh because I'm different. I laugh because you're all the same." _~Anonymous_

"I have great faith in fools; self-confidence my friends call it." _~Edgar Allen Poe_


	4. Chatting of Vampires and Humans Hybrids

**Disclaimer: I do not own Maximum Ride or Twilight, and you should all know that by now.**

Chapter Four: Chatting of Vampires and Human-Avian Hybrids

_Fang's POV_

I thought I had misheard Angel. _A vampire, Angel? _I questioned. Surely there wasn't such a thing as vampires, right? I mean, they are the stuff of fairy tales; stories told to scare little children. My mind quickly flipped through what I knew about vampires. I didn't know much, just bits and pieces of stories, of fairy tales. And I might be mistaken, but Dr. Cullen didn't look like a vampire.

_Yes, Fang! Dr. Cullen is a vampire! I saw it in his mind! _Angel seemed frantic in my mind. I tried to calm her.

_Angel, I'm sure there's a simple explanation for this, okay? Now calm down, we don't want people to get suspicious of us. Can you see if you can find out more about Dr. Cullen while I question him?_

_Yes… _Angel said, her voice tiny in my mind. _Fang… be careful, okay?_

_I will, Angel, _I replied, and then added, _and you be careful too. And tell the rest of the Flock to keep their heads up, but don't give them the details yet, we don't want them to worry._

I felt Angel leave my mind, off to probe Dr. Cullen's mind. What secrets did he hold? Were they dark and terrible, or just little secrets like having cheated on a school test? I wasn't sure. I felt bad for Angel, she is so young to have to take on so much responsibility. It must be hard for her to see into the minds of some creepy-evil scientists. But she does so without complaining, barely ever much affected by what she sees. If she is scared now, it really must be bad…

"Are they, Nick?" Dr. Cullen questioned. I snapped out of my thoughts. I tried to remember the original question. Oh, he asked if 'me and my brothers and sisters are like Max'. I still hadn't come up with the answer.

What should I tell him? There was no doubt that something was off with him; his whole mannerism, how he knew so much about human-avian hybrid DNA, and his golden eyes. Not to mention that when Angel read his mind, she found out that he is a vampire. Or something created by the School that was similar to a vampire.

That was logical. They had the ability to manipulate the human genome, so who knows what they could do. It was possible that they had created a being that needed blood to survive, as a food source. Perhaps it was just a side effect, a deadly side effect, none the less, to anyone in his way.

"I think you know the answer," I finally said, my voice hard and my eyes cold. Dr. Cullen looked startled, and then confused.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he said.

"Sure you do, _Doctor _Cullen," I said, with emphasis on 'doctor'. "You're from the School, aren't you? It's no use playing still, we figured you out." I added when he didn't respond.

"What do you mean?" he asked, with a perplexed look on his face.

I was about to respond when I felt Angel enter my mind. _Fang, I don't think he's from the School,_ she told me.

_What?! _I shouted to her.

_When I was going through his mind, I saw things from years before the School was even created... I mean before electricity and stuff. I think he might be a real vampire, Fang! _I still wasn't convinced. _Trust me, I don't think he knows about the School. He was pretty confused when you started accusing him. And I think really doesn't know about us, about any of this. He is a vampire!_

I wasn't sure how to respond. Could Angel be right? A real vampire, not created by the School? I didn't know, but I did know that he was dangerous. Whether he was a real vampire or some creation by the School, he still was dangerous… he might possibly drink blood for food.

"You have a secret, too, Dr. Cullen," I told him, trying to fish for more information. "Don't you?" I stared into his eyes for a long time. After who knows how long, the staring contest ended, broken off by Dr. Cullen.

"How did you know?" he asked softly. Wow, he actually admitted something? Well, he didn't actually admit anything, but close enough. My previous belief that he was from the School was slowly giving in to Angel's, that Dr. Cullen was just a regular vampire and has no involvement with the School.

Again, I was about to say something when Angel interrupted me. _Fang! Wait, he's a good vampire!_

_A good vampire, Angel? _I asked. Was there such a thing?

_Yes! They don't harm humans, they use animals as a food source instead! They consider themselves vegetarians. It's actually quite funny, really._

_Yes, I'm sure a blood drinking creature is quite the clown._

_Anyways, Dr. Cullen is good. You could trust him. And we have to trust him, we have to help Max. _I thought about that for a moment. _Besides, he has a secret and we have a secret, so we're on even ground. _That was a good idea, actually. Leverage. _And we couldn't win in a fight against them. They are much faster and stronger._

_They? _I asked. There was more than one?

_Yes. Dr. Cullen has 'adopted' children too. They're actually vampires that live with the same philosiphy he does._

_How many? _I asked, wondering if we were outnumbered.

_Eight, I think. And even if we weren't outnumbered, we'd be outmatched. _Angel didn't say anything more. I thought about what she said. Part of me just wanted to forget about this and leave with Max and the rest of the Flock. But Max needed medical attention, and I didn't know where the nearest hospital was. And another part of me wanted to stay and find out more about Dr. Cullen and the rest of his vampire family… if Angel was right, they would be good people to have on our side. _Just trust me, Fang. If you'd ever trust me on anything, trust me on this._

I had made my decision. I was going to trust Dr. Cullen, for now at least. No, I wasn't going to trust Dr. Cullen; I was going to trust Angel. _Thanks, Fang!_ she shouted in my mind. I just hoped I wasn't going to regret it. I thought I felt Angel leave my mind, but I heard a voice saying, _You won't regret it, Fang. I promise._ It was so soft though, I thought I might have imagined it.

"Sorry," I apologized to Dr. Cullen. "We thought you were with some people who are after us and trying to take over the world," I told him. A little overdramatic, maybe, but it was true.

"Excuse me?" Dr. Cullen asked politely, still confused.

"Do I have to say it again?" I asked irritated. I was never one for apologies, especially for people I had just met and might possibly be a dangerous enemy out to destroy my family."I'm sorry I sort of jumped down your throat. We thought you were with 'the bad guys'." I put air quotes around 'bad guys'.

Dr. Cullen looked even more perplexed. "Even though you know my secret, you don't think I'm a bad guy?" he asked.

"Well, no," I said, and then paused for a second, quickly thinking of what to say next. "You haven't given us a reason _not _to trust you, like drugging, capturing, torturing, or experimenting on us that many doctors have done in the past. And I know you're whole story, well the gist of it. You're like vegetarian vampires, right?"

Dr. Cullen's face was _classic_; it was hilarious. If the situation wasn't so serious, I would have laughed at it. It was the face of a person who couldn't believe what he was hearing; and that face belonged to a _vampire_ for goodness sakes! And when I told him that I knew what he was, I thought his eyes were going to jump out of his head.

"How did you know?" Dr. Cullen asked again, but this time with much more authority, and not as much of wonder.

"Well, that's a long story," I said. He just stared at me, and I knew he was going to want it. "Okay, here it is. First, there were your eyes. And I just had this feeling, you know? And then when I told you that we are a human-avian hybrid, you didn't move at all, not a single muscle. And it didn't hurt that I have a certain mind reader looking for any signs of trouble." I paused again. "Okay, maybe isn't that long of a story. But the story of _how_ [about us, I mean] is a lot longer."

Dr. Cullen was silent, trying to see if I was joking or not, I think. "One of you is a mind reader, too?" he finally asked.

"Yep," I said, popping the P. _Wait, too?_ I thought.

_I was going to tell you, Fang_, Angel said, _his adopted son, Edward is his name, I think, is a mind reader too. Not like me though. He can't control people's mind or speak to them in their mind or anything like that._

_You could have told me earlier,_ I told Angel. _Any other abilities he or his family has?_

_Yes,_ Angel said. _One son, Jasper, can control emotions._

_Control emotions?_

_It's hard to explain. And Alice can see the possible futures. Bella has some sort of powerful mind block… I wonder if I could read her mind? But anyway, Edward and Bella's daughter can show you her thoughts in pictures, kind of like what I do for Iggy sometimes._

_Great,_ I grumbled. Not only were there nine vampires, but some of them had special abilities too.

"Nick?" Dr. Cullen said.

"Oh, sorry again, doc," I said. "I was just talking to my sister."

"Talking to your sister?" he asked.

"Yes. We can communicate telepathically." I wasn't sure if it was a good idea to tell him that, but Angel did say we can trust him. But I wasn't going to spill the beans about al our secrets.

"Amazing," Dr. Cullen murmured. "Simply amazing."

"Yeah, I get it," I muttered. "But back to Max. We're going to trust you for now, okay? But remember we know your secret, so if you say or do anything, we can tell everyone. And we have quite a few tricks up our sleeves, too." Dr. Cullen just nodded. "Okay, so can you help Max?"

"I'm not sure," he said. "I've never seen anything like you guys, let alone try to figure out what's wrong. It may just be natural… but none of you seem to be exhibiting the same symptoms, right?"

"No," I replied.

"Okay," Dr. Cullen said, nodding (again). "With your consent, I'd like to give Max some morphine to help with the pain. And then we can see if we can figure out what the underlying problem is."

"Do it," I said.

Dr. Cullen just nodded, yet again, and then walked out of the room, saying over his shoulder, "I'll be right back with some Morphine."

I sighed. I wondered if I had made the right decision. Should I have trusted Dr. Cullen? He seems nice enough. But I didn't know for sure. Only time would tell. The only thing that was important was that Max got better and the rest of the Flock stays safe. And, if nothing else, this is definitely going to turn out to be an interesting stay in Forks.

**Okay… there's chapter four. I hoped you liked it. I'll try to update again soon. It really helps if you review, though. I am not going to go and say, "I'll update once I get **_**x**_** amount of reviews." I never liked that. I know you can't control whether other people review or not. But like I said, they definitely help, and I usually update faster when I get reviews. Speaking of reviews, thanx to everyone who has reviewed! It's one of the reasons I write, besides just for myself and practice… it's nice to see what other people think of my writing. Anyways, thanx for reading this far either way! Oh, and I was just wondering if you guys like the "Random Quotes/Smiles of the Day" part I always put at the end? I mean, does anybody actually read it? Let me know, please, so I know if I should continue to put them.**

**Random Quotes/ Smiles of the Day:D**

**Some Murphy's Laws:**

*Murphy's Law states: If it can go wrong, it will. Summer's law says: What do you mean "IF"???

*Any time you put an item in a "safe place", it will never be seen again.

*Anything dropped in the bathroom will fall in the toilet (or the sink).

*Any tool dropped in a workshop will roll to the least accessible corner. Any object dropped on the way to the least accessible corner will land on your toe.

*Anything you try to fix will take longer and cost you more than you thought.

*Corollary: If there is a worst time for something to go wrong, it will happen then.

*Everything goes wrong all at once.

*Everything takes longer than you think.

*For any given software, the moment you manage to master it, a new version of that software appears on the market.

*If anything just cannot go wrong, it will anyway.

*Just when you think things cannot get any worse, they will.

*Problems multiply as the deadline approaches.

*When you are waiting for someone for a long time, he/she will knock when you are in the bathroom.

*You click on the send button, just when your eyes see the mistake on the email.

*You are only very busy when your boss is not at the office.

*If you drop your toast, it will land butter side down.

*It is impossible to make anything foolproof because fools are so ingenious.

*Nothing is foolproof to a sufficiently capable fool.

*Make something idiot-proof, and they will build a better idiot.

*The minute you sell something you will want to use it again.

*Law of Irrational Optimism: Actually, Murphy was unduly optimistic.

*Corollary to the Law of Irrational Optimism: The "If" clause is both redundant and superfluous.


	5. An Unexpected Discovery

**Disclaimer: I don't own Maximum Ride or Twilight today. I'll let you know if that changes, but it most likely won't (call me a pessimist if you'd like).**

Chapter Five: An Unexpected Discovery

Dr. Cullen came in a few minuets later with supplies to start an IV and some morphine. When he took the alcohol pad to clean the area of skin where he had found a good vein, I winced. The smell reminded me of the School. He started the IV quickly and flushed it, and then started a saline drip with morphine.

"Okay," Dr. Cullen said while cleaning up the mess, "we should know in a few minutes if the morphine will work."

I just nodded. "Until then, would you like to start on your story?" Dr. Cullen must have noticed my hesitation because he added, "I'll need to know, Nick, if I am going to help Max. Anything that you can tell me might possibly be of some use."

"Okay. But remember our deal, okay?" I said, and Dr. Cullen just nodded in response. "We were created in by a place we called the School-" I started, but Dr. Cullen cut me off.

"You thought I was from there, didn't you?" he asked.

"Yes. Anyways, we were created as experiments. As you probably know, it was risky of them to play with DNA like that, so we were the only experiments to survive, besides the Erasers. Erasers are human-lupine hybrids. They only lived a few years, though. We were the longest living experiments that we knew of." I wasn't sure how to proceed. What should I tell Dr. Cullen? Should I tell him about the horrible experiments done on us; the fear, the exhaustion, the agony? I decided to keep it brief. "The whitecoats, that's what we called the scientists and the doctors, did all sorts of horrible experiments on us… we were just like lab-rats to them. There was one nice one, and he eventually helped us escape. We lived in Colorado with him, and he taught us to defend ourselves and other skills necessary to survive. One day he went missing, we just assumed that he was killed by the Erasers. After that Max sort of became our leader, taking care of us, since she was the oldest. For years we lived without any problems from the School, but one day they came and took our little sister. We rescued her, but we couldn't go back home… the School knew where we lived. So we've pretty much been on the run since then, never staying in one place for long. They've captured us a few times, but we've always managed to escape.

We haven't had any problems from the School for a few years… They were destroyed by us when they were about to execute their by-half plan; that is they were going to get rid of everybody who wasn't perfect. After that we kind of got involved a bit with the government for awhile; we went to Antarctica to help some scientists to gather information on global warming, but we were captured there and almost sold. We escaped again, and we haven't been bothered with anyone from the School since then." That was a good enough summary of our lives, I suppose. I studied the expression on Dr. Cullen's face. It was hard to read. There was amazement, horror, interest, sorrow, and other emotions I couldn't read. I waited for Dr. Cullen to say something, anything. This was the worst awkward silence I've had with him.

Finally he nodded (again!) and spoke, "Okay… Do I have your permission to take a sample of Max's DNA?" I was about to answer no, but Dr. Cullen quickly continued. "Nick, it would greatly help if I could look at her DNA. Like you said, it is risky to manipulate DNA, so the problem might be in the DNA itself. And if nothing else, it might give me a better idea of what I am looking for."

I was at an impasse. I knew Dr. Cullen was right, having Max's DNA would help him greatly. But I didn't want to just let him take a sample of it; experiences with several mad-scientists bent on world domination would do that to you. But I didn't have much of a choice if I wanted him to help Max. I sighed, and then answered. "Okay; but you'll only _look_ at it, right?" Dr. Cullen nodded. I hoped I could trust him. "Do it, then."

Dr. Cullen went to take a sample of Max's blood. "Dr. Cullen, you can call me Fang," I said as an after thought. "We don't really know our 'real' names, but my family calls me Fang."

Dr. Cullen smiled a brilliant smile. "Okay, Fang. I'll see what I can do for your sister." He finished taking the blood sample and started to walk out the door. He stopped before he left the room and turned around. "Fang, I try everything I can to help Max," he said in such a sincere voice that I wanted to believe him.

"Thanks," I said. Dr. Cullen left the room, and I was left alone with Max, laying on the bed, now sleeping, I think. I sat down and waited, just waiting.

_Max's POV, Later_

I came to consciousness but was unable to open my eyes. My body was stiff. I smelt the antisepticy smell… and I was filled with dread. Were we captured again? And where were the rest of the Flock? I started to panic.

But then I remembered, and started to calm down- a bit. I was talking with the Voice, and then I had a brain attack. A bad one, a very bad one. I must be in a hospital or something, I reasoned.

I was soon able to open my eyes. As soon as I did so, I shut them again quickly because it was too bright. I knew it wasn't really that bright, so I slowly opened them again. This time I took in my surroundings.

I was right… I was in a hospital rook, or what looked like a hospital room. There was an IV in my arm. I saw the various monitors. There was a window covered by an ugly curtain. And to my left on a chair was Fang.

He soon noticed that I was awake. "Max, are you okay?" he asked.

"Fine," I answered. Anybody else wouldn't have noticed the doubt that crossed his face, but I did. We had known each other for a long time, and had been through a lot with each other. We could always read each other's emotions more than we could read our own. "Really, Fang, I'm fine. Just a little tired, that's it." Fang's eyes narrowed, and he searched my face, looking for any signs that I was lying. "What happened?" I asked.

"You had a brain attack," told me.

"Yeah, I know," I said. "What happened after that?"

"Well, we decided to bring you to the hospital," he said, and then added before I could say anything else, "we agreed on that, remember?" Damn. He knew too well, I was about to say that I didn't need to go to the hospital, that I was just fine. But I couldn't lie to him… lying to Fang was harder than lying to myself. And l had known something was wrong, very wrong, and the Voice had confirmed it. But what were these doctors going to do? They didn't know anything about me.

"And I'm guessing they've noticed?" I said.

"Yes," Fang answererd. I waited for him to explain further, but of course that never happened.

"And what did you tell them?" I asked.

"The truth," Fang said. I was taken back… Fang had told them the truth? Oh my, we were going to be in a lot of trouble. What had Fang been thinking? A small voice (not _the_ Voice) in my head told me maybe he didn't have many other options. Before I got to ask him what could have _possibly_ compelled him to tell some strangers the truth about us, Fang continued. "Before you say anything, I didn't have much of a choice. Something's wrong, Max, and don't bother denying it," he said. "Besides, they say denial is bad for you," he added, his lips quirking into a smile.

I glared at him and said, "And they say family should be supportive." Fang just smiled one of those smiles I rarely see, and I knew that Fang really is worried.

"Anyways," Fang said, "I only told him the basics. Just the need to know." I nodded at that. If he had to tell someone about us, it was obviously smart not to tell them everything about us. We didn't need to give them our kryptonite, and keeping our special skills secret would be handy, just in case.

"And don't freak out, okay?" Fang said, and I knew whatever he was going to tell me was extremely bad.

"_What happened?" _I demanded.

"Nothing happened, Max," Fang quickly said. "It's just that the doctor… has some secrets too."

"What kind of secrets?" I questioned. If he had secrets, that was good. Leverage just in case he tried to do something we didn't want him to do. Blackmail, I suppose would be a better word.

Fang swallowed. Whatever this doctor's secret was, Fang was obviously worried about telling me. "Uh, he's a vampire."

_"A vampire?"_ I questioned Fang. "What, are you joking?"

"No," Fang said. I searched his face, looking for any signs of a joke. His face was completely, one-hundred percent serious.

I sighed. Fang was telling the truth, or he was lying very well. "You better start at the beginning."

Fang nodded, and started telling me of this vampire-doctor. "His name is Dr. Cullen. I thought that there was something off with him when I first saw him, but I couldn't quite place it. And I thought that maybe I was just being paranoid." He smiled at that part. "But when I told him that you were an human-avian hybrid, he stood completely still."

"So?" I wondered out loud. "He was just surprised. I wouldn't blame him. It's not really odd… well actually it kind of is, but only because he kind of under-reacted." Then it dawned on me. "Wait, is he with the School or something?" I asked.

"No, he's not with the School," Fang told me. "I'll get to that. But when I say his stood completely still, I mean he stood _completely _still." Fang put a lot of emphasis on _still_. I looked at Fang, wondering what he meant. "He didn't move a single, muscle, Max. Not one. He didn't even blink," Fang answered my unasked question.

I thought about that for awhile. If Fang said Dr. Cullen didn't move a muscle, then the doctor didn't. We would be able to notice those things with our raptor-vision. "Okay, go on," I finally said.

"After that, I asked Angel to look in his mind for anything out of the ordinary. She found out that he was a vampire." Fang paused, reading my expression. If Angel read Dr. Cullen's mind, he couldn't have lied. But maybe Angel just misinterpreted? "No, I know what you're thinking, Max. I thought so too. So I asked Angel to look for more information. She told me that Dr. Cullen had memories of before the School even started; a time where there was _no_ electricity. And he didn't have any idea what the School was."

I took that all in. So was it possible that this Dr. Cullen really was a vampire? I mean a real one, not some experiment by the School? "Okay, if Dr. Cullen is really a vampire, is he dangerous?"

"I'm not sure," Fang admitted. "But Angel trusts him. He apparently is like a vegetarian vampire; I think they eat animals instead of humans. And Angel says that they _could_ be dangerous, well not in those words; but she said that they are stronger and faster than us."

Great. Dr. Cullen is some creature who supposedly drinks animals' blood for food instead of humans', and was super fast and strong. I thought more about what Fang said, and I realized he had said _they_, as in more than one. "Wait, they?" I questioned.

"Oh, yeah," Fang said. "Angel says that there are eight more of them."

Even better. Not only were we outmatched, but we were apparently outmatched too. "Anything else you forgot to tell me?" I asked.

"Well, Dr. Cullen took a sample of your DNA," Fang tentatively told me.

"_What?!_" I shouted. "You let him take a sample of my DNA?"

"Yes, but hear me out," Fang said calmly. "He said it would hopefully tell him more about what's going on, or more what to look for."

I realized why Fang let Dr. Cullen take a sample of my DNA. "You wanted to make sure that it wasn't unraveling or something."

Fang didn't answer me. For a minute or two we sat in complete silence. Then he asked, "So what did the Voice have to say?"

The Voice? Oh, that's right; with everything that was going on I forgot about our wonderful conversation. I closed my eyes, and told Fang what the Voice had told me. "He said that my DNA is mutating by itself out of control."

"How?" he asked.

"I don't know, I didn't really ask how, I was wondering if he could stop it."

"Can he?"

"No."

For awhile neither of us said anything. "What's going to happen, Max?" Fang finally asked softly.

"I'm not sure," I admitted. "The Voice did say I was developing new abilities."

"Like how you were able to move really fast."

"Yeah. Before you ask, I don't know what other abilities I'm going to develop, or if. But the Voice said it's happening because the DNA is transforming."

"Transforming? Transforming into what?" Fang asked.

"The Voice wasn't that specific," I said.

"I think I can help with that," said a man as he walked through the doors. He was young, and looked like a celebrity or something. And his eyes, they were the most brilliant shade of gold. I realized this must be Dr. Cullen.

"I'm glad to see you are awake and better, Max," he said.

"Thanks," I said. "So do you know what my DNA is transforming into?"

"I think I do," Dr. Cullen said. "I looked at it and I obviously found avian DNA, but what surprised me were bits of DNA I _didn't _expect to find." Dr. Cullen stopped there, as if he was unsure how to continue.

"And what exactly did you _not_ expect to find?" I asked, irritated. Couldn't he just tell me what the hell was wrong with me?

Dr. Cullen looked me directly in the eyes. His eyes were full of pity and sorrow, and I knew whatever my DNA was transforming into, it wasn't good. "I didn't expect to find vampire DNA, Max," Dr. Cullen said.

I opened my mouth to respond, but closed it. I wasn't sure what to say to that. I looked at Fang, and his face even showed shock. "So what does that mean?" I asked.

"I'm not completely sure, Max," Dr. Cullen confessed. "But I think it means that you're transforming into a vampire."

**Okay, I hoped you liked this chapter! Sorry for stopping there, but I'm getting a bit tired. And I wanted a good place to end the chapter, and I figured this would be the best place. Sorry for the cliffie! But I'll try to update again soon. Did thou know that today was "Talk like Shakespeare Day?" in Chicago? Tis in honor of Shakespeare's supposed birthday. So, all of thou haveth a wonderful day! And pleaseth review, it would maketh me very happy and place a smile upon my lips! And the following art the more funny quotes madeth by Shakespeare himself!**

**Random Quotes/Smiles of the Day:D **

"The common curse of mankind, - folly and ignorance". _Troilus and Cressida_

"We are as such stuff as dreams are made on, rounded with a little sleep". _~The Tempest_

"Be not afraid of greatness: some are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon them". _~Twelfth Night_

"Fair is foul, and foul is fair". _~MacBeth_

"The first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers". _~Henry the Sixth, Part II_

"True nobility is exempt from fear". _~Henry the Sixth, Part II_

"Delays have dangerous ends". _~Henry the Sixth, Part I_

"He hath eaten me out of house and home".___Henry IV, Part II_

"A man can die but once". ___Henry IV, Part II_

"Why, then the world 's mine oyster" _~The Merry Wives of Windsor_

"This is the short and the long of it". _~The Merry Wives of Windsor_

"As good luck would have it". _~The Merry Wives of Windsor_

"But love is blind, and lovers cannot see". _~The Merchant of Venice_

"If you prick us, do we not bleed? if you tickle us, do we not laugh? if you poison us, do we not die? and if you wrong us, shall we not revenge?" _~The Merchant of Venice_

"Off with his head!" _~King Richard III_

"Conscience is but a word that cowards use, devised at first to keep the strong in awe". _~King Richard III_

"True is it that we have seen better days". _~As You Like It_

"For ever and a day". _~As You Like It_

"The fool doth think he is wise, but the wise man knows himself to be a fool". _~As You Like It_

"I like this place and willingly could waste my time in it". _~As You Like It_

"All the world 's a stage, and all the men and women merely players. They have their exits and their entrances; And one man in his time plays many parts". _~As You Like It_

"When sorrows come, they come not single spies, but in battalions".

"Though this be madness, yet there is method in 't.". _~Hamlet_


	6. Divulging Secrets

**Disclaimer: you know the drill; I don't own Maximum Ride or Twilight.**

**Oh, BTW, ****Randomitis Sufferer made a valid point when she said that there were nine of the Cullens. I wanted to say that I know that, but I meant that there are eight **_**more**_** (nine including Dr. Cullen). Just wanted to clarity that before I start.**

_

* * *

_

Quick Flashback of the Last Chapter:

Dr. Cullen looked me directly in the eyes. His eyes were full of pity and sorrow, and I knew whatever my DNA was transforming into, it wasn't good. "I didn't expect to find vampire DNA, Max," Dr. Cullen said.

I opened my mouth to respond, but closed it. I wasn't sure what to say to that. I looked at Fang, and his face even showed shock. "So what does that mean?" I asked.

"I'm not completely sure, Max," Dr. Cullen confessed. "But I think it means that you're transforming into a vampire."

* * *

Chapter Six: Divulging Secrets

_Max's POV_

"Transforming into a vampire?" I asked incredulously. That was the silliest thing I have ever heard. This doctor must be joking with me. I mean, come on! A part bird part human turning into a part bird part vampire?

"Yes, Max," Dr. Cullen said. "I found an abnormal chromosome, and I looked deeper into it. It was a chromosome only vampires have. I was just as shocked and skeptic as you, but I found other things in your DNA that only are in a vampires."

"So?" I asked. "Maybe they're only in vampires and part bird girls?"

"I don't think so," Dr. Cullen said gently. "The parts of your DNA that are the same as a vampire's are a little over two percent. Fang said that you are two percent avian, ninety-eight percent human. That isn't true; or at least anymore. I found the two percent that is avian, in addition to the two point one-five percent vampire."

I wasn't sure what to say. If what Dr. Cullen said was true, I was less than ninety-six percent human. And I had enough trouble fitting in with regular humans when I was only ninety-eight percent human. I was even more of a freak now.

"Are you sure it isn't just something to do with the avian DNA?" Fang asked. I smiled gratefully at him. I hadn't been sure of what else to say, what else to ask that would prove that I wasn't turning in to a freakin' _vampire_.

"I can't be positive, but I don't think so," Dr. Cullen said. He stopped for a minute, deep in thought. "It might help if I had some of your DNA, Fang, or some of your brothers and sisters. That way I can compare the two."

Fang nodded. "You can use my DNA," he said. I was about to protest, but Fang gave me a look and I knew that there wasn't much I could do to stop him.

"Okay," Dr. Cullen said. "It's getting late, and my shifts already past over. I need to go home; you know, keep up appearances?" Fang and I nodded. I didn't realize that Dr. Cullen had stayed here even though his shift was up for me. Maybe it was just because he was interested in us, finding some great discovery, but still. That was nice.

"Thanks for your help," I said.

"No problem," Dr. Cullen said with a kind smile. "I don't exactly have a good reason why you should stay here, except for observation. And I'm guessing you don't want to spend the night in the hospital?"

"Not really," I told him.

"I thought as much. And am I right in guessing that you don't have a place to stay?" Dr. Cullen asked.

"Uh, no," I said. "We were just planning on camping."

"That's not necessary," Dr. Cullen said. "You and your family are welcome to stay with my family. We live not too far from here."

Whoa, that was nice of Dr. Cullen. I almost was going to tell him that we'd appreciate it, but then I remembered what Dr. Cullen was. How could I have forgotten, you're probably wondering. How could I possibly forget that this man standing in front of me, offering to let us stay at his house for the night, was a _vampire_? Well Dr. Cullen is just so _normal _and nice, nothing at all what I would have thought a vampire to be like.

Dr. Cullen noticed my hesitation. "Please, Max. My wife would kill me if she learned that I let you and your family sleep out in the cold," he said, and glanced out the window, "and most likely rain. I insist." He paused for a second, and then added, "I promise we won't hurt you or anything, if that's what you're worried about. I don't know if Fang explained, but my family and I only hunt animals for food."

"He did," I said, glancing at Fang, trying to see what he was thinking. Not surprising, his face was completely impassive. Guess this whole decision was mine. "It's just that we're use to being wary of strangers, no offence."

_You can trust him, Max, _the Voice told me.

_HEY! _I shouted in my mind. _Did you _know_ that I was transforming into a _vampire_?_

_Yes, I did, _the Voice said.

_Why didn't you tell me? _I asked, infuriated.

_It wasn't necessary at the time. Besides, would you have believed me?_

I thought about that for a moment. _No, I probably wouldn't have._

_Exactly. You needed to meet an actual vampire first. That way you would be more open to the idea, _the Voice told me. It sort of made sense.

_And I'm just guessing you knew about Dr. Cullen? _I asked.

_Yes. So did you, in a way,_ the Voice said, not making any sense.

_No, I didn't, _I insisted.

_Yes, you did. Remember that feeling you had? It was leading you towards Forks, _said the Voice. I remembered how I had that weird feeling that I felt was guiding me somewhere, to someone.

_Your doing? _I questioned.

_Partly, and part of it was your subconscious. But the Cullens were the ideal vampires for you first to meet. They won't harm you, and Carlisle is a doctor. And a very nice family, to, to top it off, _the Voice said, sounding almost fond of Dr. Cullen and his family.

_Do you know them? _I asked. Unsurprisingly, the Voice didn't answer. I realized that Fang and Dr. Cullen were looking at me.

"Sorry," I said. "And thanks." Dr. Cullen looked confused. I guess he wasn't sure what I had meant by 'thanks'. "I mean, we'd appreciate your offer."

Dr. Cullen nodded, "My car isn't big enough for all of you, but I can call home and somebody else will come and pick you up."

"No, thanks," I told him, and then added, "we have our own mode of transportation."

Dr. Cullen nodded. "I'll give you directions, then."

* * *

_Carlisle's POV_

I left the hospital and drove home. It was raining again. I wasn't surprised, we chose to live here in Forks because it rained so much. There were cloudy days than anywhere else in the continental US. I thought about my very interesting patient on my way short way home.

Today had been a very exciting and surprising day at work. I love my job, but sometimes it does get a tad boring. Not that I really mind boring all that much. Boring at the hospital is a good thing; it means nobody has had any unfortunate accidents, nobody with some inexplicable disease.

Today was not boring by any standards. When Max had been brought in by her brother, I thought that she was just some regular teenager with a bad migraine, maybe a tumor, but that was it. Nothing out of the ordinary. How quickly I was proved wrong.

I remember when I listed to Max's heart and lungs. I was shocked. Her heart beat was very irregular. A cardiac arrhythmia was my first thought. But the more I listened, the more I was less convinced. I had never heard a heartbeat like that before, in all my years. And then I listened to Max's lungs. At first I had thought I had made a mistake. There was no way air could be moving through those areas. But I listened further, and it was clear that I was hearing correctly.

When Fang- or Nick, the name he was using before- told me what Max was, I was shocked. I knew it was theoretically possible to create human hybrids, but I didn't know that it had actually been done already. I was a bit skeptical at first, maybe the boy was just joking. But it made complete sense.

Any doubt I had was completely wiped away when Fang proved that he knew what I was. That was perhaps just as shocking as the fact that I had a human-avian hybrid as my patient. No one has ever guessed our true identities here in Forks, well no one except Bella, but she was the exception.

When Fang was so reluctant to trust me, at first I thought it was just because he knew I was a vampire. But I soon learned that he and his family didn't trust _anyone_. It was sad… they were so young to have gone through so much. Even I, who had been hunted by the people of my own town, including my father, couldn't fathom what they had gone through. So I knew I had to help them in any way I could.

At first I thought it would be fairly simple; look at Max's DNA and look for any problems. But then I saw a chromosome that was only found in a vampire's DNA. At first I thought it was normal for a human-avian hybrid, but I found more and more pieces of vampire DNA. I wasn't sure how it had gotten there, but I knew it wasn't an accident.

I thought back to when I told Max that her DNA wasn't two percent avian and ninety-eight percent human, but two percent avian, a little over two percent vampire, and a little under ninety-six percent human. She took it pretty well, overall.

I pulled up to the house and went inside. Luckily I found everyone already in the living room. Edward was looking at me, his face full of questions. I thought to him, _Not now, Edward. I'm going to tell everyone the full story now, okay?_ Edward nodded.

I wasn't sure how to start. Finally I decided on a simple way to slowly tell them of the events that have happened at work today. "Um, I had a pretty… _interesting_ day at work today," I said. Everyone turned around quickly and listened. I wasn't a person to say 'um', so they knew I was having difficulty telling them.

"Very interesting," Edward said.

"Yes, _very_ interesting," I said, nodding. I started on telling my family a quick summary of the day's events. "There was this girl who came in with her adopted family. At first I thought she was just a regular teenager, a regular _human_, with a serve headache. When I examined her, I found an irregular heartbeat and air moving through areas of the lungs where it shouldn't be."

"So?" Rosalie asked.

"So," I continued, "I soon found out that she was a human-avian hybrid." Everyone gasped. Whatever they thought I was going to say about Max, that wasn't it. "Anyways, that's not the most interesting part."

"There's something more interesting than a part bird person?" Emmett asked.

"Yes. I took a sample of her DNA to look for problems, but I found some rather unexpected results." I paused, looking for a good way to continue. "Her DNA was two percent avian, around ninety six percent human… and around two percent vampire."

For a while nobody said anything. Eventually, Jasper spoke up; "Let me get this straight. There is a part bird, part human and part vampire person out there?"

"Yes," I said. "I was just as surprised as you, if not more surprised. But I checked and double checked my work."

"Do you know who did that?" Esme asked.

"No, not yet. They only told me a small part of their past," I said.

"They?" questioned Jasper.

"Yes, there is Max (the one with part vampire DNA), and five of her brother's and sisters," I told them.

"Adopted brothers and sisters," Edward corrected.

"Yes. Anyways, one of them is a mind reader also," I said. Everybody's eyes widened at that.

"Another mind reader?" Edward asked. He obviously didn't get that part out of my thoughts.

"Yes, one of the sisters. And she doesn't just read minds, I think. They appear to be able to communicate telepathically," I said.

"But the point is, I invited them to stay here while I try to help Max," I told them.

"You invited them to stay here, Carlisle?" Emmett asked me. "They could be dangerous!"

"Yes, Emmett I invited them to stay here. They are only kids, and have been through a lot. And there are more of us than them, so I don't think they would try anything. And besides, we know their secret, and I'm pretty sure they want it to remain a secret," I explained.

"When will they be here?" Esme asked.

"Soon," I said. "I came ahead to explain the situation to you."

"It's odd that I didn't see them coming," Alice said, more to herself than to anyone else. "I wonder if I'll be able to see them at all?"

"Great," Emmett grumbled.

"They're our guests, you guys, and you should treat them as such," I said. "And besides, Max might soon be one of us."

"She might?" Bella asked.

"Yes, Max's DNA is transforming. I don't know how far it will mutate. She might become part vampire, or a full vampire, or just say the same," I told my family.

"She?" Jasper asked.

I nodded. "Max is a she."

Before anyone could say anything else, the doorbell rang. I was surprised, we didn't hear them coming, and nor did Edward hear their thoughts.

"Is that them?" Bella asked.

"I believe so," I said.

She frowned. "I didn't hear a car pull up."

"They said they had an alternate means of transportation," I explained.

"They walked?" Rosalie questioned.

"I don't know," I admitted.

"I don't hear anyone's thoughts," Edward said, an agitated look on his face. He was clearly unhappy that he couldn't hear the thoughts of whoever was at the door. The doorbell rang again.

"We should get the door, dear," Esme said. I nodded and the two of us went to answer the door and everyone else stayed in the living room. I opened the door and saw six kids and their dog.

* * *

_Max's POV, Later_

I was checked out of the hospital and the Flock and I want to place where Fang ditched our bags. We stopped their, and I explained the plan to the rest of the Flock. Fang or I hadn't told them what had happened yet, and they were practically brimming full with anticipation and unanswered questions.

"So are you gonna tell us what happened or not?" Iggy asked, irritated.

"I was planning on it, Iggy," I said, glaring at him and then stopping when I remembered that it wouldn't affect him. He just handled everything so well even though he was blind, it was easy to forget that he couldn't see.

"What happened Max?" Angel asked. I had kept my mind blocks up the whole time so Angel didn't know anything. I knew that it bothered her, she was used to knowing everything that was going on.

"Okay, well it's sort of complicated," I said.

"What isn't?" Iggy asked.

I ignored him, and continued. "I should start with staying we have a place to stay for the night."

"With who?" Nudge asked. "Is it with that doctor? He seemed really nice. It would be nice to stay in an actual house for awhile. I mean, hotels are nice, but houses are better, don't you think. They are just more-" Iggy elbowed Nudge, resulting in her saying a loud, "Ow!" but shutting up.

"Yes, it's with the doctor. Dr. Cullen his name is," I said.

"Are you sure that's a good idea, Max?" Iggy asked.

"I think so," I said. "He seems nice enough, Angel didn't get anything evil from him, and the Voice told me to trust him." Fang looked at him as if asking why I didn't tell him that. "We're going to stay with Dr. Cullen and his family; they're sort of adopted too."

"What do you mean, sort of?" Gazzy asked.

I took a deep breath. This was going to be difficult to explain to the rest of the Flock. "There's something you should know about the Cullens. They aren't human," I told them. Iggy, Nudge, and Gazzy's face was full of surprise and questions. "But they aren't from the School either."

"Then what are they?" Iggy asked.

I hesitated before answering, and Fang answered for me instead. "They're vampires," he plainly said, in the same tone he would have said 'They're Protestants" or "They're German" or "They're WWII Veterans". How does he do that?

"Yeah," Iggy snorted. "Vampires. Funny, Fang."

"No, Iggy," I said, "they really are vampires."

"Yeah! They really are!" Angel exclaimed. "Except they're not bad vampires, they're good vampires. They don't hurt humans, they only eat animals. They call themselves vegetarians. And Dr. Cullen is very nice, and he's going to try really hard to help Max."

For a moment or two, nobody said anything, not even Nudge-the-Motormouth. Finally Gazzy asked, "What do you mean, help Max?"

I sighed. I was hoping to wait until later to tell them that part. "Dr. Cullen is going to try to help with the brain attacks… and find out why there are parts of vampire DNA in my DNA."

Again, nobody said anything for awhile. I really, really hated long, awkward silences. Iggy spoke up first this time, "Are you guys joking? Max with vampire DNA? Ha! Not very funny, I could think of loads more jokes to pull…"

"It's not a joke, Iggy," Fang said in a tone that was sure to let Iggy know we were not joking.

Iggy swallowed, and said, "So this really isn't a joke? This doctor really is a vampire?"

"Yes," I said. "I thought it was a joke too, at first, but it's not."

"What does it mean that you have vampire DNA?" Nudge said, dropping the question they all had on their mind.

"We're not sure, sweetie…" I said, and then quietly added, "But it might mean that I'm changing into a vampire."

Iggy opened his mouth to say something, and then closed it; probably thinking better of whatever joke he had lined up.

"The Cullen's have some special abilities, too," I said, and then explained further. "Edward can read minds, Alice can see possible futures, Jasper can control emotions, and Bella has some sort of powerful shield."

"Cool," Iggy said. "Do they have any other superpowers?"

"They don't have superpowers, Ig," I said.

"You know what I mean," he scowled.

"They are supposed to be faster and stronger, so we have to be very careful," I told them.

"Are you sure we can trust them, Max?" Iggy asked.

"No, but Angel thinks we can and the Voice said to. And Dr. Cullen seems pretty nice so far. And we know their secret, so if they reveal ours or something, we can just spill the beans on theirs," I said.

"Yeah, but we have to be _alive_ to do that," Iggy muttered.

"Any other questions?" I asked. Nobody said anything. "Good, now Dr. Cullen gave us directions to their house. Now be careful, guys. And be good! No playing with bombs, Iggy and Gazzy," I said, and Iggy and Gazzy looked disappointed. "No playing with people's minds, Angel." Angel nodded. "And try to keep our other abilities secret, okay, just in case? They know that Angel can read minds, but that's it, I think."

"What about me?" Total asked, jumping into the conversation.

"You don't have to pretend, Total. I don't think a talking dog is going to freak them out… or at least too much, anyways. Just be nice," I told Total.

"As always," he said.

"Okay, let's go," I said, opening my wings. "Oh, and keep your mind blocks up. We don't want their mind reader in our minds." Everybody nodded and opened their wings also. We took off one by one, me leading.

It only took a couple minutes for us to get to the house. It was absolutely _amazing_. It had to be one of the coolest houses I have ever seen before, except maybe our old house in Colorado.

We all landed. I hesitated a moment, unsure what to do next. I kind of expected Dr. Cullen to be waiting, but I heard voices inside. He was still probably telling his family about us. I walked quietly to the door, and pressed the doorbell.

We waited. It seemed like an agonizingly long time, but in reality I think it was only a couple of minutes. I didn't want to appear obnoxious by pressing the doorbell over and over, but I pressed it again anyways.

This time the door opened. Dr. Cullen and a very beautiful woman answered the door. We looked at them, and they looked at us. It was another awkward silence, each of us taking in information about each other.

I wasn't sure if this was the best idea, but there was no turning back now. Tonight, we would be sleeping with vampires. I absentmindedly wondered if vampires slept. Whether this turned out good or bad, it was definitely going to be interesting.

**Okay… I think that is the longest chapter so far! Anyways, the next chapter will be with all of the Cullens and the whole Flock. What did you think of Carlisle's POV? I wasn't sure if I should put it, but I thought it if I was the reader I would have liked to read what Carlisle was thinking and how he explained the Flock to his family. And I know that that there hasn't been much (or any) FAX so far, but these chapters are kind of serious, not the time for flirting. But I'll try to add FAX soon. Thanx to everyone who reviewed so far! Please let me know you thoughts on this story so far, if there is anything I could do to make it better, and if I have made any mistakes.** **_Oh, and can anybody give me a good description of the Cullen's house?_ I don't have my books with me (I let someone borrow them), so I can't look up Stephanie Meyer's description. That would really help me with the next few chapters… and I'll be eternally grateful!**

Random Quotes/Smiles of the Day:D

"Genius is a capacity for taking trouble." _~Leslie Stephen_

"Everyone is a genius at least once a year. The real geniuses simply have their bright ideas closer together." ~_Georg Christoph Lichtenberg_

"I can't tell you if genius is hereditary, because heaven has granted me no offspring."_ ~James Whistler_

"Every man of genius is considerably helped by being dead." _~Robert Lynd_

"Don't worry about people stealing an idea. If it's original, you will have to ram it down their throats." _~Howard H. Aiken_

"What the world needs is more geniuses with humility, there are so few of us left." _~Oscar Levant _**(Ah, yes, I can tell...)**


	7. Introductions

**Disclaimer: I am not James Patterson or Stephanie Meyer, so therefore I do NOT own Maximum Ride or Twilight. **

Chapter Seven: Introductions

_Max's POV_

"Hello," Dr. Cullen said politely, "please come in." I looked at Fang, and then the Flock and I all piled into the Cullen's enormous house. The first thing we saw when we walked into the house was a giant staircase. It was one of those beautiful spiraling staircases. The Flock and I just stood their, mouths agape.

"This is my wife, Esme," Dr. Cullen said, mentioning towards the beautiful woman standing besides him.

"Hello," Esme said warmly, with a large smile on her face. She looked so gentle, I had more trouble believing that she was a vampire than Dr. Cullen.

"Hi," I said in a flat tone. I wasn't one big on welcomes and pleasantries.

"The rest of my family is in the living room," Dr. Cullen said. "It's this way." He started walking into a room to our left. The Flock and I followed quietly, looking around.

We came into what must be the living room. There were seven other people standing sort of in a line. Dr. Cullen mentioned to the first one. "This is my son, Edward," he said, "and his wife Bella," mentioning to the brunette Edward had his arms around. "And their daughter, Renesmee," mentioning towards the cute little girl standing in between her mother and father. She had to be the most adorable little girl I have ever seen, besides Angel, that is. Renesmee smiled shyly, and hid behind her parents.

"This is Jasper and Alice," Dr. Cullen said, pointing to the next couple. "And this is Emmett and Rosalie," he said, mentioning to the last two.

They all looked at us curiously; Edward, Bella, Renesmee (peeking from behind her parents), Jasper, Alice, Emmett, and Rosalie. There was a short silence until I realized I should probably introduce ourselves, too.

"I'm Max," I said, awkwardly. Bella, Alice, Edward, and Jasper smiled and Emmett nodded. Rosalie just stared some more. I didn't think I was going to like her much.

"And this is Fang," I said, pointing toward Fang, of course. "Iggy, Nudge, Gazzy, and Angel." The younger ones all smiled back, but Fang, Iggy, and I just sort of stared back instead.

"Don't forget about me!" a voice piped from Angel's backpack.

I rolled my eyes, and said, "Oh, and that's Total."

"Total?" Bella asked.

Total was struggling to get out of Angel's backpack. She took it off and let him out. "Yep, that's me," Total said. The Cullen's all looked astounded. I guess I was wrong about them not being surprised by a talking dog.

"You didn't mention you had a…" Dr. Cullen said, struggling for the right word, settling on, "dog."

"Sorry. Is that okay?" I asked.

"It's fine, dear," Esme said.

"Yes, it's fine, Max," Dr. Cullen said. "It's just that I'm… surprised."

"You're vampires who are talking with part bird kids and you're surprised by the talking dog?" I asked. Iggy snickered and I elbowed him in the ribcage.

"Good point," Emmett said, grinning. "I think I'm gonna like you guys."

"Can I pet the puppy?" Renesmee asked. Oh, no; Total is not going to like that.

"_The puppy_?" Total repeated, clearly offended.

_"_Total," I hissed. I knew Total was going to make a scene about that now.

"You should ask _the puppy_ if you want to pet _the puppy_," Total said. Renesmee looked confused.

"Sorry," Dr. Cullen said, "it's just that we aren't used to talking dogs, Total. Renesmee didn't mean to offend you."

"It's fine, Dr. Cullen," I told him. He didn't need to pacify Total.

"Please, call me Carlisle," he said.

"Carlisle," I said, nodding. Then I looked at Renesmee and said, "And I'm _sure_ Total will let you pet him, Renesmee."

Total started to grumble something, but stopped. Angel probably told him something to pacify him. Renesmee walked over to Total and tentatively petted him. Angel stood right by Total, protectively. Angel looked intensely at Renesmee, and then smiled. Angel sat on the ground next to Renesmee and starting petting Total too. I smiled. It seemed like Angel has already found a friend. The rest of us were just standing there awkwardly.

"So… are you guys really part bird?" Jasper asked.

"Yep," I said, popping the P.

"Do you guys have wings or something?" Emmett asked.

I sighed. I knew this was coming sooner or later. I nodded and unfurled my wings some. The Cullen's all gasped (except Renesmee, who was busy with Angel and Total), even Dr. Cullen (oh, I mean Carlisle).

"Wow," Emmett said. "That is so cool!"

"Yeah," Jasper said.

"They are very beautiful, Max," Alice added.

"Yes, they are," Bella said.

"Do the rest of you have wings?" Carlisle questioned.

"Yes," I told him.

"Can you really fly with them?" Rosalie asked. I was a bit surprised by that. Rosalie hadn't shown any signs of interest in us. Not to mention she didn't seem to like visitors much.

"Uh, yeah," I replied.

"That is awesome!" exclaimed Jasper.

"It must be amazing to fly," Edward said. I was a bit surprised when Edward spoke up, too. It wasn't that he didn't show any signs of interest in the Flock and I; no, his interest was second only Carlisle. I just thought that Edward could read minds. But then I remembered that we had our mind blocks up, so he must not be able to get through.

"It is," I replied, grinning. "Being part bird does carry certain advantages."

"It must be hard, though," Esme said. Esme already was reminding me of my own mother. She seemed to care an awful lot about some strangers. She just seemed so… motherly.

"I guess it's difficult sometimes," I admitted. "But it's not all that bad, after awhile." Fang raised an eyebrow at me. He was obviously surprised by that statement. I just gave a little shrug in return. What should have I said to Esme? That our lives were perfectly wonderful? That we always had a place to sleep, always had food to eat? That we didn't have to worry about being caught and experimented on? That we didn't have to worry about an expiration date suddenly appearing? That life was fun and perfect?

"I could only imagine," Esme told us gently. I wanted to tell her, no, you can't imagine; but of course I didn't. I was trying to be polite to the people whose house we would be staying in for the night. Not to mention that they were vampires and would most likely beat us if it came to some sort of fight. I figured it was the safest to be polite.

"Are you guys really vampires?" Gazzy asked.

"Yes," Emmett said, smiling at Gazzy. I hoped Gazzy didn't start going on and on about vampires. Luckily, he didn't; well at least not that much.

"Cool," Gazzy said. "Do you guys have cool superpowers too?"

"Yep," Emmett said. "We are really fast and pretty strong. And our skin is as hard as a rock."

"Awesome!" Gazzy said. I knew he was already thinking of other questions.

"And some of us have cool abilities like you guys," Jasper said. "I can kind of control emotions."

"Really?" Nudge asked excitedly. Didn't I already tell her that they had some other abilities and that Jasper could control emotions? "I can't control emotions, but I can read emotions. It's really cool sometimes, if I touch something I can feel what the person was feeling who touched it last," Nude said quickly. And didn't I tell her to keep our abilities secret? At least she didn't mention that she was a computer genius and magnetic… yet.

"You can?" Jasper asked. His face lit up when Nudge nodded. Then Nudge and Jasper were in a conversation that probably had to do about emotions.

"As you probably already know," Edward began, "I can read minds."

"I know," Angel said, looking over from where she was on the ground with Renesmee and Total. Angel grinned. "Now I finally have another mind reader to talk to," Angel added.

Edward smiled. "Yes, it does get a bit...." Edward stopped, looking for the appropriate word, and then continued, "difficult when you are the only one who can read minds."

"Can you read our minds?" I asked. I didn't exactly mean to be so blunt, but I was curious.

"No," Edward said, his brow furrowed. "You all seem to have some sort of mind block, like Bella here."

"I was curious about that," I said.

"I wonder if you could read Bella's mind, Angel," Edward said. "Our abilities seem to work slightly different. Maybe yours can get through her defenses?"

Angel focused intensely on Bella. I could tell that Bella was uncomfortable being the center of attention. Not that I blamed her, I didn't really like being the center of attention either. Finally Angel smiled and said, "I can a little bit. But it's difficult, and distorted. It's pretty interesting, though. Not your thoughts, Bella," Angel added quickly. I wondered what Bella had been thinking that would cause Angel to add that. But I disregarded it quickly.

"I've always wanted to read Bella's mind," Edward said. "Now I'm thoroughly jealous."

Angel smiled and was about to say something, but stopped when Renesmee put her hand to Angel's face, smiling. Angel smiled back and seemed to be having a conversation with Renesmee.

"Renesmee has a talent opposite of Edward's," Carlisle said. "She can show you things. It's difficult to explain."

"No, we know what you mean," I said. Which was completely true. Angel had shown us all different things at one time or another. She showed Iggy things most, because that way he could see things through her eyes.

Carlisle was about to ask something when Edward said, "Oh, Angel can do that too! I really am impressed and jealous now."

"How did you…" I asked. I thought Edward couldn't get through our mind blocks.

"Know?" Edward finished the sentence for me. I nodded. "I saw different things that Angel was showing Renesmee in her mind," he explained. That made sense.

"And you can see the future, Alice?" Fang asked, surprising everyone. He hadn't said a single word so far.

"Yes," Alice said, "How did you know? We didn't tell you yet…"

"Angel," Fang explained.

"Oh, of course," Alice said, nodding. "But yes, I can see the future; but that's not a great way to describe it. I can see the different possible futures."

"How?" I asked. "Aren't there thousands of different permutations?" Fang looked at me. He obviously wasn't aware that I did learn _something_ when we went to school in Virginia with Anne.

"Yes," Alice replied, "I guess you could say I see the more likely possible futures."

"Oh," I said.

"Do the rest of you have any other abilities?" Carlisle asked. I hesitated. "You don't have to tell us, if you don't want to."

"Thanks," I told him. "It's not that we don't trust you… it's just that we, well, don't trust _anyone_. But I'm sure we'll show you eventually." The Cullen's nodded. Fang looked at me, and only I was able to see the question in his face. Later I would tell him that either the Cullen's would prove themselves to be trustworthy, and we would let them in on our other abilities; or they would prove to enemies and we would have to use our special abilities to fight them. So one way or another, they would know (one day that is).

"You must be hungry," Carlisle said suddenly.

"I'm hungry," Nudge piped from where she and Jasper where still talking.

When I didn't say anything, Carlisle added, "Edward is a great cook, and we have food in the house."

"Okay," I said.

Carlisle smiled. "Great."

"Where's the kitchen?" Iggy asked. "I can help."

"It's this way," Edward said, and then Edward and Iggy went into the kitchen to prepare dinner.

The rest of us stayed in the living room. Angel was still with Renesmee and Total, doing whatever it is that they were doing. Nudge and Jasper continued talking. Rosalie went back to watching TV, along with Emmett. Gazzy sat back on the couch, watching TV, too. Alice sat on the floor, looking deep in thought. Carlisle excused himself to go upstairs and take another look at my DNA. Esme sat on the couch, reading. Fang sat on the ground, and seemed to be watching the TV, but I couldn't tell for sure. Bella sat down, watching Angel and Renesmee, and I joined her.

Everyone was settled, doing various activities. It was quiet; no one besides Jasper and Nudge said anything. I thought that the introductions went pretty well, for the most part. I thought that it was nice that Nudge had found somebody to talk to that understood about emotions, and that Angel found a little friend who could show people what she thought and somebody else who could read minds. But what I really thought about Carlisle, upstairs, looking at my DNA.

What would he learn? Was I really turning into a vampire? We didn't discuss that at all yet. I was anxious to do so, both looking forward to it and dreading it at the same time. I knew that I was changing, and I wanted to know how and why. And more importantly, I wanted to know what those changes would bring. Would they bring more cool abilities? Or would they bring an expiration date? And would there be any way of stopping it?

**This had to be the hardest chapter I have written so far. I am having some difficulty writing the Cullen's. Their personalities don't come as easily as the Flock's. How did I do? And can you give me any advice or anything? Thanks a bunch to TwilightGirl100195, Katniss212, and MoonStarWithWings for info on the Cullen's house. I didn't use it that much this chapter, but I'll probably use it more in the next ones. Next chapter will be about dinner, I think. And then some FAX… I haven't had enough of that in this story yet. And then will be the part you are all probably looking forward too… Max's transformation into a vampire. I'm not gonna tell you anymore about that, you'll have to keep reading to find out. :D Anyways, thanx to everyone who has read this far and double thanx to everyone who has reviewed. I absolutely love it when I open my email and find reviews! It definitely puts a smile on my face. And when I have a smile on my face, I update faster! Happy Monday, everyone!**

**Random Quotes/Smiles of the Day:D**

"Friends are God's way of apologizing to us for our families" _~unknown_ (Thanx to TwilightGirl100195 for that one!)

The notion that God was everywhere put paid to any possible peace of mind by the time I was six. _~Tom Baker_

**Dr. House**: You can have all the faith you want in spirits, and the afterlife, and heaven and hell, but when it comes to this world, don't be an idiot. Cause you can tell me you put your faith in God to get you through the day, but when it comes time to cross the street, I know you look both ways.

**Dr. House:** You talk to God, you're religious. God talks to you, you're psychotic.

**Dr. Chase:** You're gonna talk to a patient?

**Dr. House:** God talks to him. It'd be arrogant of me to assume that I'm better than God.

**Dr. Cameron:** If there is some higher being running the universe it's probably so different from what our species can conceive that there's no point thinking about it. But I doubt it gives a damn about my butt.

**Dr. Foreman:** So you believe God exists but you don't think about it?

**Dr. Cameron:** I think penguins may as well speculate about nuclear physics, why are we having this conversation?

~_House M.D._


	8. The Kiss Or FAX At Last

**Sorry for not updating sooner, but I've been busy. I made my Confirmation yesterday, after trying for three years (I've been in the hospital each time in the past). We just learned of it a couple of days ago, so we only had a few days to make preparations. Anyways, on with the story! Oh, and the usual disclaimer: I don't own anything of note; not even this computer. ******

Chapter Eight: The Kiss (Or FAX At Last)

_Max's POV_

After dinner, the Cullen's showed us where we would be sleeping. It was pretty late, so Angel, Gazzy, Nudge, and Iggy went to bed. Angel shared a room with Nudge, and Iggy and Gazzy shared a room. After such a long time sleeping together, nobody wanted to sleep alone.

Fang and I were sitting outside, the rest of the Flock asleep. We were both silent. Things had been pretty weird between Fang and I lately. And the recent events only intensified it.

"So…" I said, sick of the silence, but not really having anything to say.

"So?" Fang said in a questioning way. Ughh, couldn't he ever start a conversation for _once_?

"So what do you think of the Cullen's?" I finally asked.

"They seem okay," Fang said in as little words as possible.

"Yeah," I said. "They seem nice."

"Mhmm," Fang said. Silence again.

"Who would have known that there are real vampires around?" I asked.

"Who would have known that you have vampire DNA?" he asked, smiling.

"I know. I can't really believe it either," I admitted.

"But you believe them," Fang said.

"Yes," I told Fang. "The Voice confirmed what Dr. Cullen, er Carlisle, said."

Fang raised his eyebrows in a way that asked, "Really? Do tell." But of course he would never say that.

"Yeah, the Voice told me we could trust the Cullen's. That was mostly the reason we're here," I said and then added, "And the Voice hasn't been wrong before, or has given us a reason not to trust him, or her." I added the _her_ as an after thought since I didn't really know if the Voice was a him or a her.

Fang nodded. "I guess it kind of makes sense."

"I guess so," I agreed. "The Cullen's said that they are really fast, and I just am able to move pretty fast now, even for us."

"What I meant was that they were all beautiful," Fang said. Oh, Fang thought they were beautiful. I wondered which one he liked. There weren't any redheads, which Fang seemed to like so much. I caught him looking at Rosalie, maybe Fang liked her? "just like…" Fang continued, but then stopped.

Just like what, I wanted to ask. I wasn't sure what Fang meant, but then it hit me (luckily figuratively speaking). Fang couldn't be talking about me, could he? "Just like what?" I asked softly. I didn't want to jump to conclusions and make a fool of myself.

Fang looked into my eyes and finished what he was going to say before, "you."

What?! Fang thinks I'm beautiful? He never said anything about it, but it's not like I'm surprised. I thought of some things that Fang did or said; things that all made sense now. It's because he liked me. And not just as a friend or as a sister, he liked me as a _girl_.

Inside I was jumping with joy. I liked Fang too; I liked him a lot. And not just as a friend or a brother, either. I wasn't sure what to say.

I looked at Fang. Slowly we both inched closer and closer. And then we kissed. It was soft at first; but then we kissed harder. It was different than the times we kissed before. I kissed him and he kissed me. Before, I kissed Fang when I thought he might die. And when Fang kissed me, I ran (or flew) away.

Yes, this was different. And better. So much better. It was pure bliss, complete happiness. Inside I felt as if I was flying (which I can tell you first hand what is like).

Slowly we both pulled apart. I looked at Fang, and then looked away and blush. I couldn't believe it; me, Maximum Ride, not only _kissing_ Fang, but _blushing_. I was so not a girly-girl, the damsel in distress in some fairy tale. But here I was _blushing_! I was probably never going to hear the end of it.

I looked at Fang through the corners of my eyes. He was intensely looking at some rock. Most people would think that his face was showing no emotion, no sign that we had just kissed, but I knew Fang better. Probably the best; I knew Fang better than anyone. And I noticed the smallest hint of embarrassment. Wow; Mr. Rock was _embarrassed_. That was almost as bad as me blushing.

We sat in silence for a few minutes. After the euphoria started to settle down, I started thinking more about the kiss. Did Fang kiss me because something was happening with my DNA? Because I was changing into a vampire? Because I might not survive whatever was happening to me?

I looked at Fang and spoke up. "Fang, did you kiss me because of everything that's going on with me; you know, changing into a vampire?" I asked.

Fang looked surprised (or at least for him). "God, Max," he said. "It had nothing to do with whatever is going on with your DNA. I've wanted to kiss you like that for years now. And when I tried before, you just ran," Fang said. I was surprised. I was expecting a simple "no", or just a few words; not a few _sentences_.

"Don't remind me," I muttered. I was still embarrassed over the episode where Fang kissed me and I just ran. I felt like such a coward. I had been afraid to face my feelings for Fang, I realized. Because if I had kissed him, it would mean that I liked him more than a friend. Which I did, but I never admitted it to myself then. And if I liked Fang more than a friend, it would hurt more if something happened to Fang. Or if he didn't like me back. Or if one day he decided that he didn't like me anymore. Those were just all excuses, I realized. I couldn't worry about those things, because there wasn't much I could do about them.

But part of me was still afraid. Because nothing good ever lasted for us. Never. Something terrible would probably happen; and Fang and I would no longer be _Fang and I _any longer. And I wasn't sure if I could handle it.

_Yes you can, Maximum,_ the wonderful Voice said, interrupting my thoughts.

_How do you know?_ I asked, not bothering with mentioning how rude it is to interrupt people in their private thoughts during a private moment.

_Because I do_, the Voice cryptically told me.

_Oh, that's helpful, _I said sarcastically.

_Anyways, Max, you can' live your life without any good things just because you are afraid that they are going to be taken away, _the Voice said.

_I'm just being realistic. Everything good that has happened to us has always been taken away, _I pointed out.

_Not everything. You still are together, _the Voice insisted.

_Oh, how cheesy! You should've just said we still have each other, _I replied.

_Anyways, you have to live in the moment, Maximum. Live in today. Don't worry about tomorrow, don't think about yesterday. Live for today, _the Voice told me.

I had some sarcastic comment lined up (_Okay, Dr. Phil,_ or _Since when have you can become a philosopher_? _Did you get that out of some cheesy inspirational book? _or something like that.), but I thought about what the Voice said instead. It wouldn't have mattered if I said anything, chances are the Voice wouldn't have answered, and if he did (or she), whatever he said would have been useless. And in the end I would probably be left thinking about what the Voice said, so I decided just to skip that and go right to the reflective stage.

_So sort of like a better to have loved and lost than lived and never have loved at all? _I asked after thinking over what the Voice had told me.

_Exactly, _said the Voice.

I suddenly realized that it was one of those loud silences. I wasn't sure what to say. I knew that I would have to be the one to break the silence, because Fang never would. "I'm not going to run now," I finally told Fang.

Fang smiled, and I smiled back. I glanced back at the house. "It's getting late," I said. "We should probably be getting back in."

"Yes, we wouldn't want them to think we were up to something," Fang said with a smile.

We both went inside and said goodnight. Fang took first watch. I was actually tired for a change. Maybe because of the brain attack earlier today. Wow, was it only earlier today? It seemed more like ages ago. So much has happened since, the events that lead up to us meeting the Cullen's seemed so long ago. I climbed into bed and fell asleep with a smile on my lips.

_Fang's POV_

We finished dinner and Max and I were sitting outside. The rest of the Flock were asleep, so it was just Max and I sitting outside, alone. I was aware of the awkward tension between us. Since when had it been there?

Then I thought about the Cullen's. They seemed nice enough. Or at least they haven't tired to capture us, kill us, or I guess I could add drink our blood since they are vampires and all. But I still didn't really trust them. Because just like Max had said, we didn't really trust anybody.

I thought a lot about what Dr. Cullen told us about Max's DNA. Was she really turning into a vampire? Into one of them? It seemed so far fetched, like something out of a story. I kind of thought it was ironic that me, the part bird kid, thought vampires were something out of some story.

Everything was happening so fast, though. First Max had that brain attack. And then we took her to the hospital; and I met Dr. Cullen and thought something was off with him. I told Dr. Cullen our secret (well, part of it) to help Max, and then Angel looked into Dr. Cullen's mind and told us he was a vampire. Dr. Cullen then knew our secret and we knew his. Then Dr. Cullen looked at Max's DNA and found that there were parts of vampire DNA in it, and that she might be changing into a vampire. Then he invited us to stay at his house, and Max accepted. We met the rest of his vampire family and learned more about them. And now it was just me and Max outside, after all of today's events. Boy, had it been a long day.

"So?" Max said, throwing me out of my thoughts.

"So?" I questioned. Max looked kind of annoyed for some reason.

"So what do you think of the Cullen's?" Max asked.

"They seem okay," I said.

"Yeah," Max said, "they seem nice."

"Mhmm," I said, agreeing with her. Then there was silence.

"Who would have thought that there are real vampires around?" Max questioned.

"Who would have known that you have vampire DNA?" I asked with a small smile.

"I know," Max said. "I can't really believe it either."

"But you believe them," I said. I knew Max believed them; if she didn't we proably wouldn't be here. And the way she said it, the way she'd been acting; I knew that she believed the Cullen's. Probably only I would have been able to notice that. I knew Max so well, sometimes better than she knew herself.

"Yes," Max said, confirming what I already knew. "The Voice confirmed what Dr. Cullen, er Carlisle, said."

I raised my eyebrows. I hadn't known that. Max hadn't mentioned anything about the Voice earlier.

"Yeah, the Voice told me we could trust the Cullen's. That was mostly the reason we're here. And the Voice hasn't been wrong before, or has given us a reason not to trust him, or her," Max said, adding the "her". We didn't really know if the Voice was male or female, or even if the Voice was a person. The Voice could be a he, she, or it for all we know. So most of the time Max just referred to the Voice as well, the Voice.

I nodded. "I guess it makes sense," I said, meaning that it made sense that Max has vampire DNA. But Max knew what I was talking about.

Max agreed, "I guess so. The Cullen's said that they are really fast, and I just am able to move pretty fast, even for us."

"What I meant was that they were all beautiful, just like…" I said without really thinking. I was able to stop myself before I finished that sentence. I really hoped Max didn't know what I was going to say.

There was silence. Max didn't say anything, so I must be in the clear. But then Max asked me softly, "Just like what?"

Crap! Max obviously figured out what I was going to say. I guess I jinxed myself before. I thought what I should say. I could make up something. But Max would be able to tell I was lying, she knew me too well. I decided to tell Max what I was going to say before. I didn't really have anything to loose. I liked Max, I liked her _a lot_. I wasn't sure if she liked me, too. But I guess now was as good as a time as ever to find out.

I looked into Max's eyes, and then said, "You."

Max seemed surprised. I wasn't sure if she knew I liked her like that. There were times I was almost sure she knew, but then other times she seemed so oblivious. But know Max knew the truth; that I liked Max a lot more than a friend, and a lot more than a sister. I liked her in a different way then the rest of the Flock. Nudge and Angel were like little sisters to me. Iggy was like a brother and a friend, and Gazzy was like a little brother. But Max…

I looked at Max again. Slowly I leaned closer to her, and she leaned closer to me. And then we kissed. I kissed her softly at first, but then harder. It was amazing. Something that had definitely been worth the wait.

We pulled apart. Max looked at me, and then quickly looked away. And get this- Max _blushed_. I made Maximum Ride blush. That was astounding. Max never blushed, it was too girly for her. I couldn't believe that Max had blushed.

After I got over the fact that the Invincible Maximum Ride had just _blushed_, I realized _why _Max had blushed. She was embarrassed; which in return made me kind of embarrassed. Like always, I was able to conceal my emotions, but Max was probably able to see right through me. She always could. Max could always tell what I'm thinking or feeling, even when no one else could. Just like I could always tell with her.

We sat in silence. I was racking my brain, thinking of something to say. But everything I thought of seemed stupid. I couldn't think of a single thing to say. I know that normally I don't say much, but only because I don't _want _to. I almost always _have _something to say, I just _choose_ not to say it. But now I didn't have anything to say.

I sneaked a glance at Max. I couldn't tell what she was looking at (not me, thank God). But she was thinking about something. About what, though? Was she wondering-

"Fang, did you kiss me because everything that's going on with me; you know, changing into a vampire?" Max asked me. Okay, I guess I knew what she was thinking now. And it was pretty stupid. How could Max think that I just kissed her because of something she learned about her DNA? I had wanted kiss Max like that for ages.

"God, Max. It had nothing to do with whatever is going on with your DNA. I've wanted to kiss you like that for years now. And when I tried, you just ran," I told Max, exactly what I had been thinking. Max looked surprised. She obviously wasn't expecting me to answer like that. I usually make my answers (or any statements) short, simple, and to the point. I always say what needs to be said in the least amount of words possible. I am definitely a big talker like Nudge.

"Don't remind me," I heard Max mutter. I guess she still hasn't gotten over that yet.

We sat in silence again. I was waiting for Max to say something. But she didn't say anything. I looked at her. She seemed to be thinking again.

Oh, God, what if Max was thinking it was just a big mistake? This kiss was different than the others, or at least I thought so. Max didn't kiss me because she thought I was going to die or something. And Max didn't run away. Maybe she was thinking she should have run away again. But like I said, this kiss was different. Max kissed back, I'm sure she did.

Did Max really like me like that or not? Was she regretting kissing back? Those questions whizzed through my mind. I felt so stupid, pining over what Max was thinking, just like all those regular, one-hundred percent humans. I felt silly worrying what Max was thinking about the kiss, I had a lot of better things to worry about. But I didn't worry about those. I continued to wonder what Max was thinking, probably just when that jerk from Virginia kissed Max.

I briefly wondered if it was a joke. Was somebody going to come out saying, "Sike!" But I tossed that thought aside. Max wouldn't do that. Even if Max didn't like me in the same way I liked her, she wouldn't joke about it. Or at least I didn't think so. I don't know how long we sat in silence before Max spoke up.

"I'm not going to run now," Max finally said. I smiled, and Max smiled back. Everything was good between us. Perfect, even. I knew it wouldn't last like that, something bad always happened after we had our few moments of perfect happiness. But for the moment, I wasn't going to worry about the things that awaited us in the future.

"It's getting late," Max mentioned. "We should probably be getting back in."

I realized Max was right. It was late out; and we probably should be getting back inside. I was sort of tired, but I knew Max was tired. And we needed to sleep; who knows what tomorrow will hold for us?

"Yes, we would't want them to think we were up to something," I said with a small smile. I was only half joking. I didn't want the Cullen's to think we were planning something; or worse, let the rest of the Flock now that Max and I spent probably around a half an hour outside, by ourselves. Max and I would never hear the end of it if Iggy and Nudge learned that we kissed.

So Max and I went inside. I insisted that I take first watch. After Max went to bed, I thought about the day's events. It had been a long, busy day. A very interesting day, too. I sat alone with my thoughts, listening to the soft rain falling.

**Okay, I hoped you liked it! Some people mentioned that this story needed FAX, and I agreed. I haven't really written FAX before, so please let me know what you think. Was it too fluffy, or not fluffy enough? I wanted to make sure it was just right (not too much, not too little) since Max and Fang are both just now admitting to their feelings of each other (well, sort of). Anyways, I wanted to thank Randomitis Sufferer for her awesome review and suggestions. Anyone else with suggestions, please let me know! Oh, and there is some conflict if I should have the Cullen's POV more often or not (or even at all). Please let me know, so then I can make this story in a way people want to read. Thanks to everyone whose reviewed so far! Normally I don't say this, but **_**please**_** review! I NEED your input to make this story better!**

**~Amada**

Random Quotes/Smiles of the Day:D

**(Because it was a FAX chapter, these quotes are about boys and girls… funny ones, of course. No offense is intended, by the way.)**

"The average woman would rather have beauty than brains, because the average man can see better than he can think." _~Anonymous_

"Behind every successful man is a surprised woman." _~Maryon Pearson_

"Whatever women do they must do twice as well as men to be thought half as good. Luckily, this is not difficult." _~Anyonoumous _

"Women forgive but never forget; men forget but never forgive." _~Robert Jordan_

"Men always want to be a woman's first love - women like to be a man's last romance."_ ~Oscar Wilde_

"No woman ever hates a man for being in love with her, but many a woman hate a man for being a friend to her." _~Alexander Pope_


	9. Repercussions of a Kiss

**Here's the latest chapter. Sorry it's taken me so long to update.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Maximum Ride or Twilight. Maybe in a parallel universe, but not in this universe. **

Chapter Nine: Repercussions of a Kiss

_Max's POV_

"So spill," Alice said, with Nudge, Angel, Bella, and Rosalie all nodding. It was morning and the Flock and I had just finished breakfast. I didn't eat much, though. I wasn't really hungry. I guessed it was just another side effect of the vampire DNA, like not having to sleep as much. Apparently the Cullen's didn't need to eat _or_ sleep.

"Spill what?" I asked. I was pretty sure I knew what Alice was talking about, but I really didn't want to talk about it.

"You know what," Alice said, smiling.

"What?" I asked, slightly irritated. I kind of felt bad for kind of snapping at Alice. Wow, it was weird; I was feeling bad for being mean to a _vampire_. This was definitely stranger than my usual.

"About what you did last night," Angel said.

"I don't know what you're talking about," I told them. But I knew it wasn't much use, it was five against one. I'm not sure if I'd count Rosalie though, and Bella seems to not be into the whole fashion thing unlike Alice. So maybe three against one. But three very determined girls trying to get me to admit that I kissed Fang last night. This was not going to end well.

"We know you kissed Fang!" Nudge shouted. The rest of the girls gave Nudge piercing glares. Obviously they had wanted to me to spill the beans first. Nudge just gave an apologetic shrug.

I realized there was no point in denying it, so I asked, "How did you know?"

"Alice saw it," Nudge explained. Alice saw it? What did that mean? Then I realized Nudge meant Alice saw into the future.

"Oh," I said.

"And you have like this happy glow, Max," Bella pointed out. I didn't realize I was so transparent.

"So tell us what happened!" Nudge exclaimed, practically jumping up and down with excitement.

I sighed. I was going to have to tell them something, or they'd keep pestering me until I let something slip. "Fang and I went outside after you guys went to sleep," I said, mentioning towards Angel and Nudge. "We talked, and then we kissed. End of story."

"Oooohh!" Nudge exclaimed. "I knew it! I just knew it!"

"Of course you knew it," Rosalie said, "Alice told you."

"No, I meant that Max and Fang would get together," Nudge further explained. "We've been trying to get the two of them to admit their feelings for like ever."

Angel nodded. "Fang liked Max and Max liked Fang, but neither of them would admit it."

"I didn't know you guys have been trying to get Fang and me together," I said.

"You two were completely clueless!" Nudge said, exasperated. "I was starting to think the two of you were ever getting together!"

"Not me," Angel said. "I knew you and Fang were perfect for each other."

"So tell us more about what happened," Bella said.

"I already told you," I said, getting annoyed. I didn't understand why it was such a big deal. Fang and I kissed, so what? Nothing was different. Well, not really.

"No, you just said that you kissed," Alice pointed out.

"So? I am I supposed to go into agonizingly long detail?" After I asked that, I regretted it. I already knew the answer.

"Please," Alice said, smiling. I groaned.

"You already saw it, Alice," I said. "Why do I have to tell you?"

"Actually, I only saw you admitting that you and Fang kissed," Alice told me. What? She only saw me admitting that Fang and I kissed? Which I have just done? Which I wouldn't have done if I knew Alice really didn't know. It was a paradox; if Alice wouldn't have told me that she had seen Fang and me kiss than I wouldn't have admitted to kissing Fang and therefore Alice's vision wouldn't have come true. Ugh, being friends with a person who could see into the future was hard.

I realized that I had just called Alice a friend. That surprised me. I had only known her for a day. But something I guess clicked between the two of us. And Alice and the rest of the Cullen's were just as weird (if not weirder) than us. It was nice to have somebody who knew our secret, somebody we didn't have to pretend around.

"So spill," Alice added. And apparently having a friend was really annoying and hard work.

"It happened so fast," I admitted. Which was true. It did happen really fast. But the parts that I remember, I don't want to share with everyone.

Everybody nodded at that, like they knew what I had meant. Alice, Bella, and Rosalie probably did, but not Nudge and Angel.

"But it was amazing, wasn't it?" Rosalie asked. I was surprised at Rosalie. We didn't really seem to _click_ like I did with Alice and Bella.

"It was," I admitted.

"I still can't believe you and Fang kissed!" Nudge exclaimed. "Well, yes I can, but still! I'm so happy for you Max! You and Fang are absolutely perfect for each other, like Angel said. You two-"

"I'm happy for you too, Max," Angel said, cutting off Nudge (thankfully).

"Thanks," I said, blushing a little bit. What was it with me and blushing lately? Soon I'm going to turn into a timid Maximum Ride, not the fearless Maximum Ride.

"Just leave her alone," Bella said. I gave a look of thanks. She just slightly nodded. Bella obviously knew what I was feeling through.

We all sat in silence for a minute or two. Everyone was feeling awkward, thinking of something to say. Eventually Angel went off to play with Renesmee, Nudge to go and talk to whomever will listen, and Rosalie off to do something (she didn't specify). I sat in silence with Alice and Bella. Well, until another brain attack hit.

_Iggy's POV_

I walked passed the living room. I was trying to find Gazzy. Emmett had thought of an amazing prank to pull, and I was going to see if Gazzy wanted to help. But as I walked passed the living room, I heard the girls talking.

I quietly stopped. I didn't want them to think I was eavesdropping (which I kind of was). I focused on their conversation.

"But it was amazing, wasn't it?" one of the Cullen's, Rose or something I think her name was, asked.

"It was," Max said. What was amazing? What was it that the girls were talking about? Ooooh, this is gonna be good. I bet whatever it was I was going to be able to hold it over Max for a _long_ time.

"I still can't believe you and Fang kissed!" a voice happily exclaimed that obviously belonged to Nudge. Wait, did she just say that Max and Fang kissed? No freakin' way! Fang has been practically drooling over Max for years!

I turned around, looking to find Fang. He was definitely going to have to explain why he didn't tell me. I went outside and found Fang.

"Why didn't you tell me you kissed Max?" I demanded.

"What?" Fang said, his normally impassive tone slipping momentarily to show surprise.

"You. Kissed. Max." I said, putting emphasis on each word.

Fang was quiet for a moment. This was one of the times I really wished I could see. I bet the look on Fang's face is _priceless_. But then again maybe not; Fang wasn't one to show emotion.

"How did you know?" Fang finally asked.

"I heard the girls talking about it," I told him. "So why didn't you tell me?!"

"I was going to," Fang said.

"Uh-huh," I said. "Sure."

"I was," Fang persisted. "I still wasn't sure it really happened."

I decided to drop that issue for now. "So how was the kiss?" I asked.

"Nice," Fang said. I could practically hear the smile in his voice.

"Nice?" I repeated. "That's all you have to say? You just kissed Max, for goodness sakes!"

"What am I supposed to say?" Fang questioned.

"I dunno," I said. I paused, and then asked, "Was she a good kisser?"

"I don't kiss and tell," Fang said smugly.

"Come on!" I exclaimed. "At least tell me if she was better than that chick in Virginia."

Fang considered it for a short moment. "Better, definitely better."

"I thought so," I said.

Before Fang or I could say anything more on the subject, Fang said, "Max just had another brain attack." I heard him walking back towards the house.

"Maybe you should kiss her and she'll magically wake up," I snickered, catching up to Fang.

"Shut up, Iggy," Fang snapped at me. Wow, Fang really must be worried. Fang could be harsh; I had heard him say things with that tone plenty of times before. But it was usually just with Erasers or Whitecoats.

And if Fang was worried, I was worried. Especially if it showed that Fang was worried (figuratively speaking). Something really must be wrong with Max. The brain attacks recently worried me a little bit, but not too much. Max was the toughest person I knew. She'd pull though. She just had to.

_Fang's POV_

Iggy had found out about the kiss. And now he was drilling me with questions about it. I was getting pretty annoyed. I wasn't a person who talked about things; Iggy knew that. But he wasn't going to drop the subject, and I knew that.

In a sense I was kind of enjoying it. Iggy knew that I kissed Max, but he didn't know the details. And he wanted to know. But I wasn't telling. It was driving Iggy crazy, not knowing.

Iggy just asked me if Max was a better kisser than that chick from Virginia. It took a moment for me to remember who that 'chick from Virginia' was. The kiss wasn't really memorable. Not like the kiss last night with Max. But of course I wasn't going to tell Iggy that. I waited a moment before answering, knowing that it would drive Iggy even more crazy about the whole kissing thing.

"Better, definitely better," I told Iggy.

"I thought so," Iggy replied.

Then I felt a presence in my mind. Angel. _Fang, Max just had another brain attack,_ she told me. I started towards back towards the house.

_I'll be right there,_ I told Angel. I realized Iggy was still waiting, so I told him, "Max just had another brain attack."

Iggy started to catch up. "Maybe you should kiss her and she'll magically wake up," Iggy teased me.

"Shut up, Iggy," I snapped. I hadn't meant to sound so mean, but I was worried. Not that I'd ever admit it. Max's brain attacks were happening more and more often. Before it was just once in a while, and Max always pulled through. I'm not sure she will be able to this time. Don't get me wrong, Max was the strongest person I had ever known. She was absolutely amazing; the way she took care of all of us, the way she stood up to anybody in her way. But even Max might not be strong enough for this. And I dreaded thinking about what would happen if she wasn't.

I cursed the School. Even after escaping and destroying them, they still managed to wreak havoc on our life. We would never be free of them, not really. The marks they left on us would forever stay. We can't run away from who we are. We could try to forget the horrible things they had done, but the past would come back to haunt us. Always.

**Okay, I hoped you liked it. Like I said before, I'm sorry it's taken me so long to update. I'm kind of starting to loose inspiration for this story. I NEED REVIEWS to recover my lost inspiration. If not, I'll do what I do for every other story I write, I get bored and the poor story is left all alone, forgotten. So, in other words, it's up to you if I continue or not. I need to know that people are actually **_**reading**_** this story, and hopefully enjoying it. So please review! Oh, and Happy Cinco De Mayo everyone! **

Before I get into the Random Quotes/Smiles of the Day, something very funny and random happened to me the other day. Last Saturday my mom, stepdad, and I were going out to eat. There's this Banquet Hall for weddings and stuff by our house. For some reason (I don't remember what) we turned into the lot. There is this fountain, and my mom's like, "Let's stop and make a wish!" And I'm like, "Hold on, I think I have a penny in my purse!" So I am digging through my bag, looking for my wallet and a penny in my wallet while we are just stitting in a parked car right next to the fountain. There are all sorts of people going inside the hall for a wedding, all looking at us. I finally find a penny, and my mom and I throw it into the fountain from the car. We were both laughing so hard, I forgot to make a wish. By then people were staring at us, and I said, "They're probably thinking what the hell are they doing?" It was really funny, I think my mom and I laughed like five minutes straight, while my stepdad was all like "what you do that for", not getting it at all. Not that there was anything to get. So just so you know, it is _very_ fun to drive up to fountains, search for a penny, and throw it into the fountain from the comfort of your car while people stare at you.

**Okay, here are the Random Quotes/Smiles of the Day:D**

"I'll be more enthusiastic about encouraging thinking outside the box when there's evidence of any thinking going on inside it."_Terry Pratchett_

"I'll be more enthusiastic about encouraging thinking outside of the box when there's evidence of any thinking going on inside it." _~Terry Pratchett_

"Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another: What? You too! I thought I was the only one." _C.S. Lewis_

"The trouble about trying to make yourselves stupider than you really are is that you very often succeed." _~C.S. Lewis_

"Stupid Men are often capable of things the clever would not dare to contemplate…" _~Terry Pratchett_


	10. Waiting

**Disclaimer: I don't Maximum Ride or Twilight... I don't even own this computer. :(**

**Oh, and there have been quite a few questions/sugestions of when/if the Pack will come in the story. Don't worry, they'll make thier debut soon. Just keep in mind that this whole story has taken place only over a day or two so far. All the characters have been kind of preoocupied. So, yes, the Pack will come into this story, but not quite yet. Probably in a couple more chapters. Speaking of the Pack, does anyone have a good way to introduce them? Should the Flock mistake the Pack for Erasers, or should the Cullen's explain about the Pack beforehand? Please let me know, and if you have any other suggestions! **

**Anyways, on with the story!**

Chapter Ten: Waiting

_Fang's POV_

After Angel had told me of Max's brain attack, I had ran into the house. Max was on the floor crumpled into a ball again. We helped moveher into a bed, and Dr. Cullen started an IV and gaveher some morphine. Who knew that doctors carried that stuff in their house? Or maybe it was just Carlisle.

That had been hours ago. I had sat next to Max the whole time, waiting. I wasn't sure what I was waiting for, but I was waiting. There was nothing I could do, and I hated that. I couldn't help Max. And I hated myself for that.

The rest of the Flock were in the living room with the Cullen's. I should be worried that the rest of the Flock were watching TV with vampires, but I wasn't. I couldn't worry about another thing. Anyways, I trusted the Cullen's for some reason. Or at least as much as I trusted anyone.

Angel had come in earlier to sit with me, but she had to leave the room right away. The pain she got from Max's mind was unbearable for Angel, even when she tried to tune out Max's thoughts. That of course made me feel even worse; knowing how badly the pain was.

I heard someone walk into the room. Out of the corner of my eyes I saw that it was Edward. He sat down next to me. When Edward glanced at Max, he winced; which in return made me wince. I knew it was because of the pain in Max's thoughts that had made Edward wince.

I sat silently. What was Edward doing here? It obviously hurt him. I waited for Edward to give any indication to why he was here. Not that he really needed a reason, I guess. It was his house, but still.

"She'll be okay," Edward said gently. I didn't say anything. How did Edward know that? He wasn't a future teller, that was Alice. And from the stories that the Cullen's spoke of, Alice's 'visions' weren't always accurate.

"From what I've heard, Max's a trooper," Edward added. "She's strong. She'll make it through this."

"Of course Max was strong!" I wanted to scream at Edward. "She's the strongest person I know, and almost definitely will ever know." But of course I didn't. Most of the time I thought talking was a waste of time. Nobody ever really listens to you. I tried to say as little as possible; that way I wouldn't let anything slip about how I was feeling. I have had the whole "dark, silent, and mysterious" thing going on. It wasn't because I liked it, it wasn't because I wanted to annoy anyone, it wasn't because I wanted to impress anyone, etc. It was because sometimes when you speak, you let things slip. I didn't want anyone to know what I was really feeling and thinking. I had to keep up the strong second-in-command image for the rest of the Flock. And if I spoke, there was a chance I would slip and the little ones would know that I wasn't as strong as I pretended to be, and that despite appearances I was scared. Especially now, with everything that was going on with Max.

Edward was silent for a moment, probably waiting for me to say something. He quickly realized I wasn't going to say anything. "Carlisle is the best person to help Max," Edward told me. "He's quite specialized in, let's say, _unique_cases." Edward smiled a little bit at that. Yeah, Carlisle was uniquely qualified, considering that he was a vampire and who was who knows how old.

Edward was being nice to me. His family was letting my family crash at their house, and his 'father' was helping Max. And Edward was trying to comfort me or something even though it probably hurt him just by being in the room. So I should say _something_ to him, just to acknowledge that I was listening. "I know," I said.

"If anyone can help Max, it's Carlisle," Edward said, his voice full of confidence. I was about to nod in agreement, but then I realized what Edward had said. He had used the word _if_. _If_meaning that there might not be a way to help Max. I tried to push that thought out of my head, but I couldn't. What would I do Carlisle couldn't help Max? I would never be able to take her place, not in a million years. That fact was proved when we tried to split up because of the whole Ari issue. Would I be able to handle being the leader of the Flock if something happened to Max? I was second in command; if something happened to Max I would become the Flock leader. But I wasn't sure I would be able to actually do it. I briefly remembered that Max had made me promise that I would take care of the Flock if something happened to her. I wasn't sure I could keep that promise now.

My face must have shown some of what I was thinking, because Edward quickly realized his mistake and corrected himself. "Carlisle _will _help Max, Fang," Edward told me.

I looked at Max, she was unconscious, I think. The medicine that Carlisle gave her must have helped her fall asleep. Sleeping, Max was probably prettier than when she was awake. Her face was devoid of the stress that she normally wore; instead her face was completely relaxed, along with the rest of her body. God, she was beautiful. I thought about the kiss the other night. Why had we waited so long to do that? To admit our feelings? We had danced around each other for years. Sure, there was some flirting, but it was all harmless and completely good natured. The two of us never really had a relationship as a more than friends. And now we may never get the chance.

"I hope so," I told Edward, taking my eyes off of Max too look him in the eye. "I really hope so."

**

* * *

**

Okay, sorry for the delay in updating, but I haven't been feeling well and I've been debating on how to continue this story. And sorry it's short, but I wasn't sure how to proceed. So I need your help so I can keep going with this story. I want to know what you readers think I should do; I REALLY need your input. Otherwise, I'm not sure I can really keep writing this story. SO REVIEW AND TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK!!!

**I need to know if you guys think I should:**

**A) have Max turn into an avian-vampire hybrid now,**

**B) have Max's recover from the brain attack and wait a little while longer.**

**And there have been conflicting opinions on the POVs. Should I:**

**A) keep in mostly in Max's POV, sometimes adding Fangs**

**B) add Carlisle's POV and maybe some of the other Cullen's**

**C) alternate between POV's.**

**So please tell me what you think, and if you have any other ideas. I need to have some definite answers before I update again. I normally don't say this because I absolutely hate it when authors say this, but I need a decent number of reviews before I update again. I checked the hits, and I have **_**way**_**more hits than reviews; so I know you people are reading this. So please just drop me a line, even if it's just saying, "Good job, keep it the same way," or "this abosultely sucks and is the worst fanfic in the history of fanfics" or "I'd like to see the Cullen's POV" etc. Anyways, thanx in advance! And please, please, review! Virtual fluffy pink elephants to everyone who reviews! (Don't ask.)**

**Random Quotes/Smiles of the Day :D**

**Homer:** Trying is the first step towards failure. ~_The Simpson's_

**Will Turner:** This is either madness... or brilliance.  
**Jack Sparrow:** It's remarkable how often those two traits coincide. ~_Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl_

**Chandler:** Hey, you guys in the living room all know what you want to do. You know, you have goals. You have dreams. I don't have a dream.  
**Ross: **Ah, the lesser known "I Don't Have a Dream" speech. ~_Friends_


	11. A Successful Experiment After All

**Disclaimer: Nothing has changed since yesterday. I do not own Maximum Ride, or Twilight.**

**_Okay, I found this on somebody's profile. And I totally agree:_**

**_One of my biggest pet peeves is those people that decide to put me or my story on their favorites or alerts list but DON'T LEAVE A REVIEW!!_**

**_Seriously, I won't get mad at you if you read without leaving a review; we all do that. However, if you add me to one of those lists and don't tell me WHY you liked the story enough to do so, I will send you a message along the lines of, "I'm so glad you liked my story! Mind telling me why?"_**

**_Now that that's out of the way, we shouldn't run into the issue anymore. On to the stories!_**

**_One more thing: If you notice any typos (either in my profile or in one of my stories) I would appreciate it if you would let me know. Thanks!_**

**_So please keep this in mind while you're reading! Enjoy!_**

****

**Chapter Eleven: A Successful Experiment After All**

_Mystery Woman's POV_

A middle age woman was working at her desk. It was late, and everyone else had went had went home. She heard a _ding_ and glanced at her computer where the noise had come from. She expected it to be an email, but what she saw was much more interesting… and more surprising. There was a little green blip on the screen. It showed the location of the infamous Maximum Ride. That wasn't the surprising part; her location had been known for months, but there hadn't been the resources to extract her. If the woman was reading these readings right; extracting Maximum Ride would become their top priority.

The woman remembered years ago when she and a select group of scientists were given some samples of DNA. Very special DNA- but only a few knew what it was, herself included of course. It was vampire DNA.

An experiment was started with the vampire DNA. They were instructed at the highest level to create a vampire hybrid. The vampire-hybrid would be strong, fast, smart, and possibly have other abilities. After years of trying, the experiment was stopped. It was deemed a failure. Almost all of the vampire-hybrids were terminated; all except one: Maximum Ride.

It was thought that the vampire DNA was recessive. Maximum Ride was kept alive for other reasons; but experiments regarding vampire DNA were abandoned. But now as the woman was looking at her computer, she realized that they were wrong.

The experiment was a success. The so-called-most-successful-experiment, Maximum Ride, had active vampire DNA. And it was mutating quickly. Soon Maximum Ride would become the vampire hybrid they tried to create all those years ago.

The woman checked her results, and double checked them. She didn't want to make a fool of herself in front of the Volturi. As soon as she was certain she had made no mistakes, she saved her results to a flash drive and got in her BMW that she was borrowing from the Volturi (the vampire she was borrowing it froget to see her die; but her revenge would be far worse. She would see Maximum Ride become that which she fought against all those years. Maximum Ride would help bring upon the end of the world; or at least the end of humanity's end of the reign of the prominent species on Earth.

m had no use of the car; he had many more better and faster cars). She sped down the road past the speed limit to Voltura.

There was no way that Maximum Ride would escape this time. The Volturi would send members of their elite order to extract her, and quite possibly her precious Flock too. Maximum Ride and her Flock were good, but not good enough to fend off members of the Volturi's personal guard.

The woman was definitely excited. She might actually have an actual audience with the great Aro himself; one of the leaders of the Volturi and the one who supported the experiment. She might prove herself worthy to the Volturi. She might actually become one of them, if she was lucky. And perhaps most importantly, she would get revenge on that wretched Maximum Ride. No, she would not

* * *

_Carlisle's POV_

I was upstairs in my study looking at Max's DNA. It was difficult for me. I hadn't had any experience with human-vampire-avian DNA combined. But I was doing fairly well, I thought. I just hoped I was doing good enough. I wanted to find a way to stop Max's DNA from mutating any further. I didn't want her to turn into a vampire. It wasn't a life I would wish on anyone. Sure, there were some perks, but overall all of us would give almost anything to be human again.

I looked at the percentages of the different types of DNA. There was still just two percent avian DNA, but the vampire bit was no longer two point one-five percent. It had exponentially. Max's DNA was now composed of two percent avian DNA, about ten percent vampire DNA, and eighty eight percent human. It was mutating faster than I originally had thought.

I quickly went downstairs to tell the others the news. I first went into the room Max was in. That was where Fang had stayed all night long. But he wasn't there. Then I went into the kitchen, thinking that maybe Fang was hungry. I tended to forget that our houseguests needed to eat since we do not.

"Fang, I need to talk to you," I told him. Fang looked at me, examining my face and then nodded.

"What's up, doc?" he asked.

I swallowed, unsure how to continue. I decided it was best just to tell Fang everything upfront. He didn't seem like the type that liked surprises. "I was examining Max's DNA," I began.

"And?" Fang questioned, his voice serious. He face was devoid of any emotion, but I knew he was curious and worried.

"The vampire part of Max's DNA has mutated much faster that I thought. It has multiplied exponentially," I said.

"How much?" Fang asked calmly.

"Her DNA is now composed of about ten percent vampire DNA, eighty-eight percent human DNA, and of course two percent avian DNA."

I saw Fang clench his fists. I felt so sorry for him. He and his family had led such a hard life. And know he was being told that his friend's DNA was mutating out of control.

"What does that mean?" Fang finally asked after a minute of silence.

"I'm not really sure," I admitted. "But I think it means that Max is transforming into a vampire. If the process doesn't slow down, the human DNA would be completely rewritten within a few days."

"Rewritten?" Fang repeated in a questioning way.

"Yes. The vampire DNA is changing the human DNA. Not the avian DNA, though," I added.

Fang was silent again. "So that means Max will become a vampire within a few days?" he asked me.

I nodded. "I think so," I said solemnly.

Before Fang or I could say anything, Angel ran into the kitchen, in tears. "What's wrong, Angel?" Fang asked softly. I was surprised at that. Fang seemed so distant, quiet, and devoid of emotions. But when he asked Angel what was wrong, I could see all the emotion pouring out of Fang. I knew that Fang loved Angel, and the rest of his Flock. And he would do anything for them. It was amazing to see somebody so young to have such deep feelings. It must have been what they had gone through; I guess it is true that some bonds are truly unbreakable.

Angel was strong. And something very bad must have happened to make her so upset. I had a bad feeling; a _very _bad feeling. Something was definitely wrong. But what?

"I-I-It's M-Max!" Angel sobbed.

Fang's previously impassive face now showed worry. I knew that Fang was close with Max. He had stayed in the room Max was in all night long. Maybe they were in some sort of romantic relationship? But whatever the nature of their relationship, Fang cared deeply about Max. All of the Flock did.

"What about Max?" Fang attempted to ask calmly, but his voice slightly shook.

"She's gone!" Angel exclaimed, tears streaming down her face.

* * *

**Fang and I looked at each other. How could Max be gone? Nobody knew that they were here, and with our vampire hearing we would have heard any intruders. But there was no denying that something was wrong. Angel didn't seem like the kind of person to make this up, or blow things out of proportion like that. So the question remained: what was wrong? And how could Max just be gone? We waited for Angel to explain herself further.**

**Okay, I hoped you liked it. Evil Cliffie, I know! Sorry, but I was going to continue but the chapter would have been too long. And I guess I was also just being lazy. Anyways, please let me know what you think. I need reviews to keep going with this story! Thanks for everyone who reviewed so far! Especially Randomitis Sufferer, for the love of Iggy, and Katniss212 for all their reviews and input. I still need more reviews though. I guess you kind of get addicted to reviews; for my other stories I only have a couple reviews, but for this one I have just reached over sixty; Thanks for everyone who helped me get there!!! Anyways, thanks again, everyone for reading and the reviews! And like I've said before, I'm always looking for new fanfics to read, so let me know about yours. Review for review… fair trade! I'll try to update again soon! And don't forget to review, the button won't jump up and kidnap you! **

**Random Quotes/Smiles of the Day :D**

*****Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. It's just that yours is stupid.

*****I am free of all prejudices. I hate everyone equally.

*****Remember, today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday. **[Insert evil laugh here]**

*****You can't spell awesome without ME!

* * *


	12. Gone

**Disclaimer: I do not own Maximum Ride or Twilight. Tear Tear.**

**Oh, and the results were inconclusive, so I decided that I was going to start Max's transformation into an avian-vampire. I'm getting anxious about this story- I already have the ideas of how the transformation will go, some dialouge in my head, and a little bit of the beginning of the transformation started.**

Chapter Twelve: Gone

_Max's POV_

I came to consciousness after that brain attack. My head still hurt, but the pain was starting to ebb. It had to be the worse one yet. I tried to open my eyes, but my eyelids felt heavy. I was tired, it must have been the medicine that was flowing into my veins through my IV.

_Max, you have to listen to me, _I heard a familiar voice say inside my head. Ugh, the Voice.

_Can't you just leave me alone? I am have just finished with another of your brain attacks! _I shouted in my head.

_I told you, Max, _the Voice said, _those brain attacks aren't my fault. They are the result of your DNA mutating._

_Lovely,_ I said sarcastically. _So you can't stop them?_

_No, I cannot,_ the Voice told me. _But there is still worse to come._

_Something worse? _I asked. What could possibly be worse than me getting freakin' headaches that feel as if my somebody was pulling my scull apart?

_Yes, your DNA is mutating much faster now._

_What does that mean? _I asked the Voice. There was silence. Now was NOT the time for the Voice to ignore me. _Voice?_

_It means, Max, that you are transforming into a vampire… and very quickly, _the Voice told me.

_What?! A vampire? I thought I only had a little bit of vampire DNA? Now I'm going to turn into a full blown vampire?! _I exclaimed in my head.

_I'm sorry, Max, but yes, that is correct, _the Voice solemnly said.

_Isn't there any way to stop it? _I asked, desperate to find a way to keep the part of me that was still human stay human.

_No, there is not. _There was another pause. _This transformation is dangerous, Max._

_Dangerous how? _I asked.

_Physically, you should be fine, _the Voice told me.

Should _be? _I questioned.

_There is a slight chance of something happening, but I wouldn't worry too much about it, _the Voice said.

_And yet you mentioned it, _I said.

_I'm beginning to think I shouldn't have, _the Voice said in a slightly annoyed tone.

_So what _should_ I worry about? _I asked.

_Your consciousness, _the Voice told me.

_What, my Jiminy Cricket? _I asked sarcastically. Yep, that's me. My life be hanging in the balance, the very essence of my DNA changing, but I still find time for sarcastic remarks.

_What I mean is that there is a chance you might not make it through the transformation,_ the Voice clarified.

_I thought you said that I shouldn't worry about that! _I mentally exclaimed.

_You shouldn't worry about the physical repercussions of the transformation… but the mental repercussions are a whole other matter,_ the Voice explained.

_What's that supposed to mean? _I asked the Voice.

_Your mind might not make it through in tack, _the Voice said.

_My mind? _I questioned.

_Yes, _the Voice said, _there is a possibility that the transformation will be so overwhelming that your brain won't be able to handle it._

_What would happen to me, then? _I asked, partly afraid of the answer.

_There are a couple of possibilities. The worse case scenario would be that your mind would be completely blank. You wouldn't know anything, you wouldn't be able to do anything, _the Voice informed me.

_I would be brain dead, _I stated.

_Yes, in a sense. Being brain-dead is a little different, but the same principle, _the Voice told me.

_Any other scenarios? _I asked, hoping there was a less grim possibility.

_Yes, _the Voice said, _there is a chance that you would have amnesia, in a sense. You would loose all your memories and your personality traits would be erased, _the Voice said.

_So I'd be like a blank shell? _I asked. _I wouldn't be Maximum Ride anymore._

_No, you wouldn't, _the Voice said. _Your body would still be there, but your mind wouldn't… or at least your mind as it is now._

_I would loose everything that makes me, well, _me_, _I said.

_But there is a way to drastically improve the chances of your mind coming out intact, _the Voice said.

_What do I have to do? _I asked.

_You have bury your subconscious and conscious mind, _the Voice told me.

_Okay…_ I said, _how exactly do I do that?_

_You have to think of nothing,_ the Voice said.

_Nothing?_ I questioned.

_Nothing, _the Voice repeated. _Your mind will bury itself deep, deep inside and I will assist you in protecting it, therefore the transformation of your DNA shouldn't affect your mind._

_Okay,_ I said unsurely.

_It will be okay, Maximum. I will assist you in every way I can, _the Voice reassured me.

_When do I do this? _I asked.

_Now, _the Voice replied.

_Now?! _I shouted in my mind.

_Inside voices, Max, _the Voice chastised me.

_But I haven't had any time to prepare, and I have to tell the Flock what's going on! _I insisted.

_There isn't really a way to prepare, _the Voice said, _and I will let the Flock know what is happening._

_How exactly do you intend to do that? _I asked.

_Don't worry about it, _the Voice told me. _Now think of nothing._

I decided to listen to the Voice. He (or she) hasn't let me down so far. So I thought of nothing, or rather I tried to think of nothing. It is remarkably difficult to think of nothing. Thoughts whizzed through my mind. Memories, worries, ideas, dreams, and all sorts of things came in and out of my mind. I thought of the Flock. Especially Fang. I thought of how I had wasted all those years denying my feelings for him. I should have acted on them before. If I had the chance to do things over, I would do things differently. Very differently. But I didn't have the chance to do things over. And now I might not even have a chance to act further on them. I didn't know how things would work between us if I made it out of this DNA mess. How could an avian-vampire and an avian-human be together?

_Stop thinking, Max,_ the Voice said, breaking my train of thought.

_I'm trying, _I hissed to the Voice.

_Try thinking of an empty room instead, _suggested the Voice.

I took the Voice's advice. I envisioned a plain, white room devoid of any furnishings. Some stray thoughts came to mind, but I discarded them quickly, not paying any attention to them.

Soon I became more and more relaxed. I felt some odd sensation come over me. It was hard to describe, but it was wonderful. I didn't have a care in the world. I felt as if I was flying (which I would know).

And then I felt as if I was falling. I was falling, falling, falling… There was nothing. I was alone, all alone. And I was terrified. I couldn't feel my body. All that was there was my mind. There were all sorts of things going on outside of the little box my mind was occupying. I couldn't tell what was going on. I was alone, all alone in my box. I had no control over anything. I was alone, falling. And I was terrified.

* * *

_Fang's POV_

"Max!" Angel sobbed.

"What's wrong with Max?" I asked, my composure beginning to slip. I was filled with dread. I wasn't sure I would be able to take it something happened to Max, especially since we just started going out (or at least I think we are).

"She's not there!" Angel exclaimed, tears streaming down her face. What did Angel mean Max wasn't there? Of course Max was there, we would have heard if somebody would have kidnapped her, and she was still out of it when I when I went to grab something to eat. Max couldn't be gone, she just couldn't…

"What do you mean, she's not there?" I asked calmly as I could. I stroked Angel's face and wiped her tears. "Did she leave? I thought she was still sleeping."

"No!" Angel cried, "Max is there, but she's not _there_!"

"What?" I asked, incredulous. I heard Carlisle ask the same thing. How could Max be there but not _there_? I thought maybe this was some sort of joke; but no, Angel wouldn't do something like that. And the look on her face; it's a real picture of fear, dread, and loss. Nobody could make up that expression. Something definitely happened to make Angel so upset. But what?

"_Her mind. It's gone,_" Angel said slowly, looking me deep in the eyes. Tears were still streaming down her beautiful face. I tried to understand what Angel had said, but it didn't make any sense. How could Max's brain be gone? Did evil Aliens abduct Max to take her mind but sent her body back?

"Why don't you start at the beginning, Angel?" I asked, hoping that I could make some sense of what Angel was talking about.

Angel nodded. "I went to go find you, Fang. I thought you'd be in with Max," Angel started. "When I got there, I didn't feel the pain from the brain attack. So I thought she was better." Angel continued to cry.

I kneeled down next to Angel and pulled her into a hug. I normally wasn't a huggy person, but this was a special occasion. This was Max's area of expertise; Max was amazing with the little ones. She was a leader, a big sister, a best friend, and a mother all rolled into one awesome Max package. "Keep going, Angel," I said softly, "you're doing great."

Angel nodded. "I didn't hear any of her thoughts, so I thought she had her mind blocks up. But she didn't. I was able to get into her mind, but there was nothing!" Angel exclaimed, still in tears. "Her mind is gone! Completely gone!"

Angel continued to sob in my arms. I carefully stroked her cheek and wiped her tears. I felt horrible, I couldn't do anything to comfort Angel. She was inconsolable. I felt so powerless, unable to help the youngest member of the Flock, the little girl who was just like a little sister to me.

I still didn't understand what Angel was saying. How could Max's mind be completely gone? I believed Angel, though. She knew what she was talking about. As much as I had hoped that she had blew things out of proportion, I knew Angel was right. She would know what a mind block would feel like, so something must have happened to Max for her mind to just _disappear._

"I'll go get Edward," Carlisle said. "he might be able to help."

I nodded and Carlisle went to find Edward. With Edward being a mind reader, he could confirm what Angel had said. It's not that I didn't believe her, it's just that maybe Max has developed a new, more powerful shield or her subconscious is buried deeply inside her.

I still help Angel in my shoulders. Angel sobbed still. I tried to wipe away her tears, but more and more came. I hoped that Edward would be able to shed some more light on this situation, because it appears that Angel won't be able to tell us much more. So I was on the ground, holding Angel, and hoping that something horrible didn't happen to Max.

Why was it that we never seemed to catch a break? It's like the universe hated us. Like the whole world was plotting against us. Before, with Max, we were able to handle everything. As cheesy as it sounds, we had each other. But know with whatever was happening to Max, we might not make it through. Because Max was the one who kept the Flock together. She had been a mother, a sister, a friend. Even when Jeb was with us (that lying insert-your-choice-of-swear-word-here Max was really the one who took care of us. She was the one who put Band-Aids on the little one when they fell, tucked Angel and Gazzy (and sometimes Nudge) in bed, the one who yelled at us to clean our rooms, the one who insisted on those training exercises (which _did _come in handy), the one who comforted us all when things got bad. Max kept the Flock together, kept us all okay. And now, with her facing the unknown, I realized how much Max had done for us, how much she had given up for us.

I hated to think about it, but I wondered what would happen if something happened to Max. I know that she asked me to take care of the Flock. But was I capable of filling in her very sizeable shoes (I mean it figuratively and literally; Max did have fairly large feet, maybe a size ten or so)? I didn't think so, nobody would be able to replace Max. So I hoped, with every ounce of hope I had, that Max would pull through. That she would make it. That Max would be okay.

* * *

_Carlisle's POV_

I went to look for Edward. I thought about Angel, and what she had said. It seemed that Fang took Angel seriously. She was definitely mature for her age. But how could Max be gone? I slipped past the room that Max was lying in and peeked my head in. She was there, sleeping peaceful. I would do a full exam later; right now I needed to find Edward.

I wondered if it was possible for Max's mind to simply disappear. I know it was possible that Max had amnesia or something (but from what, part of my mind asked), but I thought that Angel would pick up some thoughts from Max (if her mind-reading abilities were anything similar to Edward's). It was also possible that Max was brain dead. If that was the case, there was nothing I could do.

I found Edward reading with Renesmee. I thought to Edward about the recent events. He told Renesmee that he would be back later and to go read with Mommy. Renesmee left the room, and Edward quickly came towards me.

"How could Max's mind simply be gone?" Edward asked me.

"I don't know," I said, thinking of the possible theories I had.

"Hmm," Edward said, "I guess that's possible. Perhaps some effects of the vampire DNA?"

"Maybe," I said.

"Do you believe Angel?" Edward asked.

"I think so," I said uncertainly. "Fang and the rest of the 'Flock' seem to take her opinion very seriously. And Angel does certainly seem much more mature for her age. And she has definitely been through a lot."

Edward nodded. We had reached the room Max was in by the end of our short discussion. Fang and Angel were already there. Angel was still crying, but she had calmed down a bit (but not much) I observed.

Edward looked at Max. He his eyebrow furrowed. There was a look of concentration on his face. We waited a good minute or two until Edward finally spoke.

"I don't understand," Edward muttered.

"What?" Fang asked quickly.

"There's…" Edward stopped, looking for the appropriate word. "_Nothing_."

Fang's face paled. "Nothing?" he asked.

Edward sighed. "No, nothing," he said, as if he was uncertain of himself. Edward shot me glare at that thought. "I've never seen anything like it before. Angel's right, Max simply isn't _there_."

"What do you mean," Fang said, his patience starting to dwindle. "How could Max _not be there _when she is _right there_?"

"I don't know," Edward admitted. "Like Angel said, her body is there, but her mind is not."

"So where did it go?" Fang asked the obvious question.

"I'm not sure," Edward said, again admitting his uncertainty.

"Is Max brain dead?" Fang asked quietly.

"No, I have read the minds of a person who was brain dead –don't ask- and it was much different than this. And Max doesn't simply have her mind blocks up like you do, and she doesn't have whatever Bella has to keep people from manipulating her mind," Edward said, going through all the things he knew _wasn't_ wrong with Max.

"So basically Max's mind is gone and we don't have a clue why?" Fang bluntly asked. Angel sobbed harder at this.

"Yes," Edward and I said simultaneously. I thought through all the different possibilities, but we have already ruled out most of them. The rest just didn't make any sense. I didn't any idea whatsoever why Max's mind has suddenly seemed to disappear. And from the looks of it, nobody else did either. I just hoped that we would be able to figure it out. Max meant a lot to these kids. I could tell how worried Fang and Angel are, and I knew that the others would be just as upset, if not more, as Fang and Angel. Everyone in the room was silent. I started to rack my brain for any other possibilities, but I kept coming up blank. But I had to think of something, I just had to.

* * *

_Fang's POV_

When Edward confirmed that Angel was right- that Max's mind was_ gone_- I didn't know what to think. Thoughts flew through my head. I wondered what we would do, what we _could _do. But as far as I could tell, there was nothing that could be done. Max, our leader, a mother to the little ones, my best friend, and the person I loved was lost to me, possibly forever.

_Not forever, Fang,_ I heard a voice say. I blinked. What was that? It didn't sound like Angel, and I didn't feel her entering my mind. I shook my head. I must have imagined it. Or it was my subconscious denying the fact that Max might be lost forever.

_Your not imagining this, Fang, _the weird voice said again. _Nor am I your subconscious._

That's it. I must finally be going crazy. Max's mind disappearing must have been what was needed to push me over the top. I had an urge to shout to myself, but I didn't. I didn't want the others to think I was crazy, even though I was. I had to be strong, for the Flock, like Max asked me to. It was the least I could do- honor her final wishes.

_You aren't crazy, Fang_, the same voice said; except this time it was occupied by a searing headache.

_Sure… _I said. _That's what all the voices in people's heads say._

_Max was just like this at first, _the voice said with something that sounded like a sigh.

For a moment I forgot about the whole hearing-voices-indicates-psychotic-breakdown. Because the voice had mentioned Max. _What do you mean, Max was like this at first? _I carefully asked.

_Remember New York? The Institute of Higher Living? _the voice asked me. Of course I did. But how did the voice know? But I guess if it was part of my subconscious, it would know.

_For the last time, I am not part of your subconscious, _the voice said, sounding slightly irritated.

_Of course I'm irritated. Wouldn't you be if somebody was trying to insist that you were not real? _the voice said.

_Fine, _I snapped, _I'll pretend for a moment that you're real._

_Okay, _the possibly-real-voice said. _In New York, when I first started talking (in a sense) to Max, she thought she was going crazy._

I thought back to New York. For awhile Max did think she was going crazy but that was when… I let my thoughts trail off. _Oh my God… this is _the_ Voice, right? Max's Voice? _I said, finally understanding.

_Yes, that is what Max calls me,_ Max's Voice told me.

_Okay, if you are Max's Voice, what are you doing talking to me? _I asked. But then I thought that the voice was _Max's_ Voice. So maybe the Voice knew what happened to Max.

_Yes, I do, Fang,_ Max's Voice said.

_Do tell, _I said in a slightly sarcastic tone. I was in a better mood now, since Max's Voice popped up... the Voice might be able to tell me how to help Max.

_It's going to take a while, _Max's Voice said. _You'll probably get a slight headache, though. Sorry, it can't be helped._

When Max's Voice mentioned a headache, I realized I was starting to get a killer one. I rubbed my temples, trying to ease the pain a bit. But the pain would be worth it, if I could help Max.

_About helping Max... _the Voice said. _Well, Max doesn't need help. But I can tell you what's going on._

Wait, I can't even help Max? She was all alone on this?

_Yes, she is. I'll explain everything, _Max's Voice said. _But you should tell everyone what's going on. They are all looking at you strangely._

When I snapped out of my thoughts, I did notice everyone looking strangely at me. "I'm just talking to Max's Voice," I said as nonchalantly as I could. Edward and Carlisle looked incredibly confused (it would have been funny under different circumstances) and Angel's eyes widened.

"W-what?" Carlisle asked.

"Not now," I said, maybe a bit harsher than I intended. "I'll explain after I figure out what's happened to Max." Carlisle and Edward just nodded, and Angel continued to look me with a surprised look on her face.

_Okay, Max's Voice, _I said, _tell me what's going on._

* * *

**Okay, I hoped you liked it. I think this is my longest chapter yet, almost four thousand words on Word. Please let me know what you all think. Thanks to everyone who helped me get to seventy-five reviews! I know you all have probably heard this alll before, but reallly is amazing to reach a pretty high number. Okay, I know seventy-five isn't really _that _much, I have seen fanfics where there have been hundreds, sometimes even thousands of reviews; but that's not going to rain on my parade. The reviews really help... I need inspiration to continue writing, I need to know what people think so I could make changes if necessary, and I need to know that people are actually reading my stuff. Anyways, thanks to everyone who has reviewed! And keep 'em coming!**

**Random Quotes/Smiles of the Day :D**

Everything here is eatable. I'm eatable, but that my children is called cannibalism and is frowned upon in most societies.

Of course I'm talking to myself. Who else can I trust?

If up is down is up and down is up and left is right and right is left then what's wrong?

Tell the truth and then run!


	13. Fang Talks to Max's Voice

**Disclaimer: (n.) 1. Refusal to accept responsibility 2. Statement renouncing legal right 3. Denial of knowledge. Antonyms: **_**claimer**_

**That was for those of you who **_**don't**_** know what a disclaimer is. Chances are most you do know, but you can never be too sure… never underestimate human stupidity.**

**I can't believe I am up to chapter thirteen! Most people believe the number thirteen is unlucky, but I think that the chapter thirteen is lucky (or at least as lucky as any other number, meaning it's _not _unlucky). So thanks to everybody who has helped me get here!!! Especially to the following (in no particular order): **MoonStarWithWings, Katniss212, Madeline Cullen, Randomitis Sufferer, Aquaflame13, TwilightGirl100195, XOXmaximumcullenXOX, for the love of Iggy, Phobias Athena, and Kelsey Goode

Chapter Thirteen: Fang Talks to Max's Voice

_Well, as Angel and Edward have already told you, Max's mind isn't present at the moment, _Max's Voice told me. What a big help he (or she or it or whatever Max's Voice is) is.

_No duh, _I said. Like I didn't already know that Max's mind was gone.

_Max's mind is not gone, Fang, _Max's Voice said.

_Wait, what? _I asked, confused. Didn't Max's Voice **just **say that Max's mind was gone?

_No, I said her mind wasn't present at the moment, _Max's Voice corrected.

_There's a difference? _I asked sarcastically. I understand now why Max would get frustrated while talking to the Voice. He was annoyingly cryptic about _everything_. I guess that's just something else special about Max. I had never realized how patient she was. She could be quick to anger sometimes, but she really did have a lot of patience, since she put up with us and the Voice.

_I do resent that, _Max's voice said. _I am not 'annoyingly cryptic'._

_Are too, _I insisted. Okay, I know, that was incredibly childish, but I couldn't help myself. I thought of all the times Max's Voice had given us 'help'. It was always stuck in riddles. Like when with that credit card, Max said that the Voice had said that we could use it if we had the password. I would call that annoyingly cryptic, wouldn't you? Most people would just say, "Here's a credit card and this is the password" not "Here's a credit card and you can use if you can figure it out" (although I wasn't sure if Max's Voice was a person or not when I think about it).

_Fine then, _Max's Voice said in a tone that I almost thought was a pout. _If you don't want my help, then I'll just leave._

Okay, apparently I'm not the only one who could act childish. Voices inside people's heads can act like little kids too (and no, not the voices in _your_ head arguing, I meant the voices from a different person, or maybe a computer or something). But I did need Max's Voice's help, so I decided to pacify him.

_Okay, if Max's mind 'isn't present' where is it? _I asked.

_Max has buried her conscious and unconscious mind deep, deep inside her, _Max's Voice explained.

I thought about that for a moment. How could a person bury their mind inside themselves? It wasn't worth asking, though. I decided to ask _why _Max buried her mind deep inside herself.

_I used 'bury' figuratively, _Max's Voice said. _She really didn't bury her mind… a better explanation is like she's in a __**very**__ deep state meditation._

_Okay…_ I said, not really caring too much about _how _Max 'buried' her mind, but more about _why_. So that's what I asked next.

_**Why **__did Max put herself into a 'deep state of meditation'? _I asked, using the same tone Max's Voice uses when I repeated Max's Voice explanation of the disappearance of Max's mind.

_Because of the transformation, _Max's Voice told me simply. Okay, that was incredibly freakin' cryptic; but no, Max's Voice _isn't _crytic at all (note the sarcasm).

_What transformation? _I asked, my patience starting to waver. But then I started to think about what Max's Voice had said… _because of the transformation_. Transformation? Did Max's Voice mean her transformation into a vampire?

_Yes, _Max's Voice said, and then (surprisingly) explained further, _Max's transformation into a vampire is different. She was not bitten by a vampire and have vampire venom injected into her bloodstream, causing the transformation to use the bloodstream to transport the venom to the rest of the body and changing it. Instead, the transformation is happening in her DNA._

_So? _I asked. I understood only a little of what Max's Voice was saying.

_So, _Max's Voice replied, _the transformation is much more dangerous. A regular transformation into a vampire is dangerous, but this is even more dangerous, since Max has vampire DNA mixed in with human and avian DNA._

_What does this have to do about Max's mind being buried? _I asked. I still didn't understand what Max's Voice was trying to say. It was all scientific babble to me.

_It _means_ that there is a chance that Max might not make it, _Max's Voice said.

_WHAT?! _I mentally shouted to Max's Voice. Max might not make it? Like she might not survive?

_Most likely the physical transformation should be fine, _Max's Voice began, _but it's the mental transformation I'm worried about._

Wow… Max's Voice was _worried_? Who knew Max's Voice could have _emotions_? I'm guessing now that Max's Voice was a person; a he or a she, not an it. Max's Voice didn't have anything to say on that subject.

_Why are you worried about it? _I asked.

_Because the transformation might too overwhelming for Max's brain to handle. So in order to increase the chances of Max's mind coming through intact, I am assisting her to bury her mind, or put it in a deep state of mediation, _Max's Voice said, adding the last bit, probably because I was about to comment that he (or she) said that Max didn't really bury her mind.

I sat on that information for awhile before I spoke to Max's Voice again. _What are the chances that Max will make it through okay?_

_I am fairly confident that Max should be fine, _Max's Voice said gently.

_Can't you do anything to help? _I asked, hoping there was a way Max's Voice can just stop this transformation or something.

_I am doing everything I can, _Max's Voice told me. _But I cannot stop the transformation._

_So what do I do? _I asked since I was unsure on how to proceed.

_Wait, _Max's Voice said. _All we can do now, Fang, is wait._

I nodded, forgetting that I was talking to somebody _in my mind_ who wasn't even_ in the same room as me_. I looked around the room. By now the rest of the Flock and the Cullen's had somehow squeezed into the room. They were all looking at me strangely. I didn't say anything, even thought I knew that they were waiting for me to say something.

"What do we do, Fang?" Angel finally asked, breaking the silence.

I closed my eyes tight and swallowed. "We wait, Angel. All we can do is wait."

* * *

**Okay, time for the Author's Note. Read this one this time, especially if you skip them. Yes, you. I know you don't read the Author Notes (but don't worry, I usually don't either). But this time it's important. Okay, for one, I am going to be moving "Maxamorphosis" to the Twilight/Maximum Ride Crossover Section next time I update. So for those of you who don't get my Story Alerts (speaking of which, thanks to all of you that do!!!), you'll find "Maxamorphosis" in the Crossover section next time. Secondly, I am going to start making my chapters shorter, but hopefully update more often. Thirdly, I am going to be trying to update my other stories too. I have been only updating "Maxamorphosis" lately (I guess it's sort of a story made out of procrastination :D), but I want to work on my other stories too. You can check them out if you're bored and/or miss my absolutely wonderful writing (I pride myself on my modesty). :D I have my first fanfic, "Finding Perfection In Shades of Grey" (actually, I've been thinking of changing the title... it's a bit too cliche), "Saving the Future World", and "An Evil Mad-Man's Beginning: The First Experiment" (I've been thinking of changing that title too). I have others, but they're Stargate SG-1 and Doctor Who fanfics. So I have to work on updating all of those (well one is a one-shot), plus I have a bunch of other ideas I've been dying to write. But I digress; if you don't see an update here for awhile, don't worry... I probably haven't been abducted by aliens, the giant purple crayon monster didn't eat me, caught in a time loop, I wasn't gobbled up by a black hole, thrown into another time period by some experimental time travel device, captured and experimented on by mad scientists, or destroyed by the washing machine (I swear it's out to get me!); I've just been updating my other stories. Please check them out, too!!! Oh, and please review and tell me what you think! I still need to know what people think and if they have any ideas. Speaking of ideas, if anyone can think of a good prank Iggy and Emmett (and possibly Gazzy) can pull, please let me know (since I'm not a prankster). I'd be eternally thankful!!! So thanks for reading, and please please please review!!!**

* * *

**Random Quotes/Smiles of the Day :D**

"Arthur," said Ford.  
"Hello? Yes?" said Arthur.  
"Just believe everything I tell you, and it will all be very, very simple."  
"Ah, well I'm not sure I believe that."  
_~Douglas Adams, Life, the Universe, and Everything_

*There's a sucker born every minute. _~P.T. Barnum_

_*_For every credibility gap there is a gullibility gap. _~Richard Cobden_

*Gullible is written on the celling. _~Anonymous_


	14. Explanations

**Disclaimer: you should know the drill by now, I don't own anything. Twilight belongs to Stephanie Meyer and Maximum Ride to James Patterson. Got it? Good, on with the story... [que drums]**Chapter Fourteen: Explanations

* * *

_Fang's POV_

Everybody was looking at me, just looking at me. I hated being the center of attention, even more than Max if that's humanly (or avian-human or vampire) possible. I was a person who would be described as "dark and silent". I said as little as possible most of the time; words just never seem to get the picture across. I was more visual, I guess.

So of course when Iggy asked, "Dude, will you explain a little more?" in his usual annoyed tone, I was dreading retelling my entire conversation with Max's Voice. Maybe I could get Angel to tell them for me. Nah; that would just be weird.

I took a deep break before I started to explain, don't ask me why, 'cause I don't know. Maybe it's because I'm used to single syllable answers. A full sentence is like a huge step for me. I guess it goes a long way back. Back at the School.

I had learned quickly that the best way to survive that place was not to be noticed. Don't show any incredible ability (not that I had one to show), don't talk to the Whitecoats, don't talk to the other experiments. If I wasn't noticed, they would leave me alone. Well, they would always come back to do another experiment, but I think they did less on me than the others; who talked back, who fought back. People like Max.

"Max has a Voice in her head," I explained to the Cullen's. I decided that I should clue them in about that. I wasn't entirely sure if I trusted them yet, but so far they haven't seemed so bad. And soon Max was going to be like them. Max as a vampire… that seemed so farfetched, even to the part bird-kid who was talking to the Voice _inside his mind_ that usually spoke just into his best friend's (and possibly girlfriend's) mind. The Cullen's expressions were priceless. I felt a little muscle on my face twitch; if Max were _here_ than she would have known that I had found that amusing. Max knew me so well… she was able to differentiate my emotions by just the smallest of the small changes in my face. It was always harder to keep my emotions hidden from Max than anyone else. (And for those of you thinking _'Fang has emotions?_' quit it. Yes, I do have emotions, I just usually prefer not to show them.)

"Not a looney-crazy voice," I told them, "but this voice is, well, we don't _actually _know much about it, or he or she," I added as an afterthought, "But Max's Voice has helped us in the past."

"Remember when Max first got the Voice? That Ouija board told Max to 'Save the World' and all the computers and TVs were talking to Max? That was really weird, but kind of cool too. Or when Max's Voice told us to-" Iggy, thankfully cut Nudge off. The Cullen's were even more flabbergasted, if that was even possible.

Carlisle gathered his composer first. "You mean to say that Max has a sentient voice in her head separate from her own?" he asked.

"Yep," I said, popping the 'P'.

"Amazing," I heard Carlisle say, probably the Doctor part of him.

"So what did Max's Voice _say_?" Iggy asked with even more impatience.

"That, and I quote, 'Max has buried her conscious and unconscious mind deep, deep inside her'," I said.

"Max buried her mind inside of her?" Gazzy asked, not understanding. "Does that mean that it's like, now in her stomach or something?" Ah, the innocence and ignorance of childhood. Not that any of us had much of that left, with all the shoplifting, hotwiring-of-cars, blowing up buildings owned by evil corporations, fighting grotesque human-lupine hybrids and robots, and so on. So I guess we don't really have that innocence of childhood anymore.

Carlisle and Edward were also confused by my statement (as was everybody else, come to think of it). "What do you mean that Max has buried her mind inside of her?" Edward asked before Carlisle could.

"That she's in a very deep state of meditation or something," I further explained. I was really starting to get uncomfortable. So far I have spoken more than I probably do in an entire day within just a few minutes. (Mental conversations do not count.)

Carlisle and Edward started to think about that, and the Flock, well they just still were waiting for me to tell them in the simplest term possible what was wrong with Max.

"Did, uh, Max's Voice say about _why_she buried her mind?" Carlisle asked, stumbling over what to call Max's Voice. He was obviously already thinking of some theory.

I hesitated before answering. I didn't really want to tell the Flock that there was a chance that Max might not make it through. But I figured they find out sooner or later (_they_ being an occasionally-annoying-kid-mind-reader). "Max's Voice said it was because the transformation was dangerous. A regular transformation into a vampire is dangerous, but Max's will be even more dangerous because she doesn't have any venom in her system; instead the changes are taking place in her DNA," I said, trying to repeat what Max's Voice had told me as close as possible.

Carlisle nodded and said, "That makes sense. And so to prevent trauma to Max's mind, she has put herself in a deep meditative state."

I shrugged, saying, "That's pretty much what I got out of it."

"But Max will be okay, right?" Angel asked; wanting somebody to tell her that the person who has been like a mother to her will be okay. Sometimes it's easy to forget that Angel's just a kid, after everything that she-we- have been through.

"She should be okay," I knelt down, trying to calm Angel who had tears building up in her eyes.

"Bu-but she'll be okay, right, Fang?" Angel sobbed.

"I don't know, Ange," I whispered. "But Max will fight. If anyone can make it through this, it's Max. Right?" Angel nodded, wiping tears from her eyes.

"One thing I still don't understand is why Max 'buried her mind' now," Edward said. I thought back to the conversation Carlisle and I had before Angel came running in saying Max was gone. Gosh, that seemed like ages away, but it was really just less than an half an hour ago.

Carlisle didn't say anything for a moment, his golden eyes deep in concentration. "Because her DNA was mutating quickly, Edward, very quickly," Carlisle said.

Edward seemed to think it over, and then finally nodded. "That would make sense. Before Max's DNA was mutating fairly slowly, but it seemed to start mutating exponentially." I was gonna take a wild guess and say that Edward was reading Carlisle's thoughts on that one.

"So when will Max, you know, wake up?" Iggy asked. Everybody looked directly at me. (It was creepy how even Iggy directed his gaze towards me too.) Why did they look at me? I didn't have the answers they wanted.

I shrugged my shoulders and said, "Max's Voice wasn't that specific. You know how he-or-she-or-it-or-whatever-it-is is 'annoyingly cryptic'?" I quoted Max's description of the Voice. The Flock nodded, and the Cullen's, well they just stayed in the same positions, probably unsure what to do.

"I'm guessing that Max will wake up when the transformation is complete," Carlisle said. Well, duh. I could have told him that. "Alice, have you seen anything?"

Alice shook her head. "But I'll keep looking," Alice said in slightly chirpy voice. It took me a minute to realize what Carlisle had meant when he had asked if Alice had 'seen anything'. He had meant had she seen anything in her visions, or whatever it was that she got that told her about the future.

"You're right, Fang," Carlisle said. "All we can do now is wait."

I nodded. I knew that, after all it was me who told him that first. The Cullen's left the room, off to do whatever it is they do, but the Flock all stayed in the room with Max.

"So," I heard a tiny voice I'd recognize anywhere, "what do we do in the meantime? Anyone up for a game of cards?" Total asked. "I play a mean game of poker."

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**Okay, there it is; chapter fourteen fresh and ready. Hope you all liked it. This story is getting harder to write though, for some reason. For awhile this was my favorite story I was writing, but now my favorite story of mine is "An Evil Mad-Man's Beginning: The First Experiment". Check it out please, if you have a chance. And thanks so so so much to all the people who reviewed! I'm up to ninety-five as of right now! So hopefully by the next chapter I'll get to over a hundred. [hint hint] Anyway, thanks for reading, and thanks in advance to those who review! It might be awhile until I update again. I just haven't been in the mood to update this story lately, so I've been working on my other favorite story (the one listed above) more. So don't be surprised if you don't hear from me, chances are I'm just working on other stories of mine and haven't, let's say, been demolecularized, sent into a parallel universe, caught by the FBI (wait, I never said that), sucked into the TV into Telletubbies Land (that show is super creepy, isn't it? I mean little monster-looking things with TVs in thier stomachs? Weird... even by my standards), eaten by the Giant Purple Crayon Monster, or destroyed by the washing machine (which is out to get me, I swear! It goes 'boom' practically every time I walk by!). And if I don't update by the ninth, you won't hear from me for a few weeks (most likely) since I have surgery that day. They're gonna take a scope and look at my brain stem to see why I am so awesomely amazingly superbly brilliant (that's what I keep telling myself :D). Hopefully I get cool pictures... Anyway, happy summer! Most of you are probably out of school or soon will be out of school (or aren't even in school and working so life still sucks, sorry). Plus it's starting to feel like summer around here. Thanks for reading, and reviews are greatly appreciated as always!**

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**Random Quotes/Smiles of the Day :D**

"Ever stop to think and then forget to start again?"

"Don't hate yourself in the morning; sleep until noon instead."

"Everything here is eatable. I am eatable, but that, my children, is called cannibalism and is frowned upon in most societies."


	15. She

**Disclaimer: y'all know the drill by now. I don't own Maximum Ride or Twilight. Need I say any more???**

**Oh, and thanks so much to everybody who has reviewed! I hit over a hundred with the last chapter. So thanks to Aquaflame13, who was the hundredth viewer and to Madeline Cullen who let me know that I was over a hundred... otherwise I'd still be here clueless and not jumping up and down for joy, figuratively, since I don't think my neurosurgeon would appreciate me jumping up and down just a week after brain surgery (which went well; thanks to those who wished me luck). Anyway, now for perhaps my four favorite words on fanfiction: ON WITH THE STORY!!!!**

Chapter Fifteen: She

_Fang's POV_

We waited. That's all we did. Nudge barely talked at all. Angel, who almost always had a smile on her face, was in tears. Gazzy and Iggy didn't blow anything up or pull and pranks. Gazzy didn't use his special "abilities" (thank God for that one). And, I; well I just sat there. I had sat in the same spot so stilly for so long that even when Carlisle, Edward, or sometimes the other Cullen's didn't see me, even with their enhanced vampire vision.

I felt so useless. There was nothing I could do. I wasn't used to that. The times we were captured by the School; Max always had a plan, and then those rare occasions she didn't have one, I was usually able to provide one… or at least help her create a plan. Put there was no plan this time.

There was absolutely nothing I could do, nothing at all. It was different than the times when we were captured by the School and they would take Max for "experiments". Different because her entire _life _was hanging in the balance. Okay, sometimes there were some experiments that could have possibly killed Max; or any of us, really. I guess it was different because there were people doing the experiments, putting Max's life in danger. There was always a chance, however slim it may be, that one of them would stop. Like when Jeb "rescued" us.

It was different than that time Max had to fight Omega. I was so stupid; I let my feelings for Ari, petty vengeance, get in the way. I let my hate of Ari come between Max and me. Between the Flock. If I had to do it over again, I would have done things differently. When Max and "her" Flock (plus Ari) went to Europe to stop the by-half-project and got caught, I was in a whole other continent. If I was there I could have helped them fight there way out; or at least have been there for her.

Max didn't talk about what had happened in Germany. Actually, come to think of it, she never talked about things related to the School. But then again, none of us did. But Angel told me bits and pieces of what happened. That crazy-Director-slash-fake-loving-FBI-foster-parent told Max that she was her mother. And then chained Max and "her" Flock in a room. Then some whitecoats came and asked Max all sorts of questions, which of course Max gave them the most sarcastic remarks she could think of, and who wanted to_ buy _Max. Buy _his_ Max. It was sickening to think that people would even think of selling other people, well mostly people with a little bit of bird mixed in (and apparently vampire, too). I might have been able to do something then.

_No, you probably couldn't, _Max's Voice said, startling me. I guess he (or she) was taking residence inside my brain while Max is in, well whatever it is she is in. I waited for Max's Voice to say something else. Of course, Max's Voice didn't make another comment. Max was always saying that the Voice would pop in when she least expected/wanted it to, but never actually said anything when Max asked a question or needed advice.

Since obviously Max's Voice wasn't going to say anything again (at least not right now), I thought about what he, or she, said. Could I have made a difference when Max was in Germany? Would they-we- still have been captured? It was pointless to think of these questions… the endless amounts of ifs.

I tried to convince myself of that. I wouldn't have been able to help Max. I did help Max a little bit, though, when I thought about it. My blog, which Max thought was pointless, prompted kids from all over the world to attack Itex facilities. That was truly amazing to me. They were just "regular" kids; kids without enhanced DNA that made them faster and stronger and gave them heightened senses. Regular kids that knew that they were facing evil-mad-scientists with a vision of world-domination. They had known about the Erasers and the Flyboys; they knew the danger going in. But they still went and attacked Itex locations probably nothing but sticks, stones, different types of balls, water balloons, paintballs, squirt-guns, and other items that "normal" kids could easily get their hands on (sadly, no "regular" kids were able to make bombs as well as Gazzy and Iggy; because if they were I think every single Itex location would be nothing but rubble).

When I started the blog, I never really expected the amount of viewers I have gotten. I never expected the response from the rest of the kids in the world to be so _huge_. But once word got out, I think _every _kid who owns a computer started checking in my blog. And the messages they left… they were sometimes funny; they were full of encouragement; they included _a lot_ of questions (some of which, I admit, were pretty awkward); once in awhile some advice (which were usually funny; I mean a "regular" kid who goes to school five days a week, came home and had a snack, did homework, and then watch TV or go on the computer, had a specific bedtime, were involved in all sorts of extracurricular activities, and were always well fed, clean, and clothed with new name-brand clothes that weren't tattered and stained with blood _offering advice_ to a group of part bird kids who were pretty much constantly on the run, never knew where we'd be sleeping the next day or what we would be eating, and had to constantly stay on guard, watching out for anybody- or _anything_- that were out to capture/kill us. They had no idea what our life was like, even though I wrote about it in my blog. They were just as qualified to give us advice as they were to give advice to the president- no offense.); and almost everybody would say if they needed anything that they'd try to help or if they were in such and such area drop by and say hi. And it was really the blog that ended up being perhaps the most useful in the end (although Max and I still disagree about it) since Max left a message on the blog asking for help (I knew it had to be bad if Maximum Ride was _asking_for help) so I knew to go and rescue her (although Max still insists that she wasn't "rescued"; she just escaped wsith a _little_bit of help) and was able to ask the kids to attack the Itex facilities, hoping it would be enough of a distraction so Max would be able to escape.

I tried to convince myself of all that. I wouldn't have been able to help Max when she was in Germany if I was with her. I, along with Gazzy and Iggy, would have been captured, chained up, had those collar-things put on, tried to be sold to the Chinese, maybe have been showcase along like a prized show dog (like that human-feline hybrid Angel showed me), or forced to fight, most likely to death. Or worse than all that, I would have _seen_ everything they did to Max, seen how Max try to keep her composer up for the little ones, and probably the worst, I would have had to sit and watch Max battle Omega, unable to anything.

Just like I was unable to do anything now. Except this was worse. Worse than anything I had to see Max go through. Because when Max would be experimented on, I knew that the whitecoats wouldn't just kill Max (or at least at first), and that she'd make it through okay. When Max II replaced Max, I knew that Max would try with every ounce of strength she had to make it back to us. When Max fought herself (aka Max II, the clone), I knew she'd win because unlike Max II, Max had _feelings_and _emotions _that gave her a reason to fight, a reason to win. When Max and the rest of "her" Flock were going to be terminated (or whatever word the whitecoats were using as a synonym for "kill"), I knew that Max would do everything she could to make sure that "her Flock" would make it out of there, and not as the property of the Chinese government. When Max dueled Omega, well I already knew she won; but I would have known because Omega was nothing but a blank shell, his brain filled of only the things the whitecoats put in there. He wasn't able to think for himself, he didn't understand the concept of _freedom_.

There were so many different times Max had gotten herself (and usually us) into a life or death or experimentation-that's-worse-than-death situations (not that they were her fault). But I always knew she would make it. She would make it because she was _Max_. She was the strongest person I know, and I've met a lot of people.

Max has been like a mother to all of us, even when that lying-traitor Jeb (Or is he on the good side now? I can't really tell. They really should send us memos about whose side everyone is on.) was "taking care of us" and "training us just in case"; it was Max who we all trusted. And after Jeb's supposed death, Max really became like a mother to us, sometimes even Iggy and me, who were only a few months younger than Max. Max would wake us up in the morning. She attempted to make breakfast for us all, but when it became obvious the whitecoats didn't give Max any culinary skills, Iggy took over for breakfast. She would make sure there was food for Iggy to make meals. She would get us new, well new-used clothes, when we outgrew our old ones. She would tell us to clean our rooms (once in awhile we actually listened). She would do the laundry (sometimes with help) so we had clean clothes, that Max insisted that we put away. She would comfort the little ones when they got scared. She would put Band-Aids on when the little ones got a "boo-boo". She taught the little ones to how to fight (with Iggy and my help) since they were too young when Jeb was with us. She had us practice our fighting and defensive moves. She would get out the first aid kit when one of us got hurt. She pretty much raised Angel, since Angel was so young when Jeb left. She would try (and fail) to keep Iggy and Gazzy from building different types of bombs. She taught Angel that she shouldn't go around reading peoples mind, that it was impolite (Angel listened, well _still_listens to that unless she feels otherwise). She taught us how to read (well, mostly the little ones) and we'd spend hours watching TV and going online, which is pretty much were we learned everything we know (those few weeks in Virginia with the fake-loving-foster-mother-FBI-agent-director-of-evil-corporation-that-wants-to-take-over-the-world Anne don't really count). She was like our mother. She _is_our leader. She almost always has a plan, and when she doesn't, she makes it up as we go along. She can fight better than almost anyone. She has kicked more Eraser and Flyboy a** then anyone else; no questions about that one. She has gone through more and the worst experiments than all of us. She is full of sarcastic remarks and comebacks. She can stare down anyone (well, not Iggy since he can't see, but still). She can fierce when it comes to us (or chocolate). She wasn't someone you'd want to be on the bad side on; you definitely wanted to be on her good side. She could be gentle with the little ones, especially with Angel. She wasn't vengeful; even after she was switched with Max II and put in an isolation tank while Max II attempted to bring us to our death and then had to duel her clone (to the death, of course), she still didn't kill Max II, despite what sh had done. She did the same thing with Omega; Omega almost killed her and would have had no regrets at all about it, but when Max finally had the chance to finish him off, she didn't. She hated crowded spaces. She hated the antiseptic smell, it reminded her, well all of us, of the School. She loved chocolate-chip cookies, especially home-baked. She would try to help somebody she had never met before (like Ella). She was a great leader. She dealt with all five of us, six if you count Total (which I better or else I'll never hear the end of it); and trust me, we're a handful. She would do anything for us; her Flock, her family. She pretty much had next to zero patience for authority. She didn't "respect" adults like she was supposed to (not that mattered to her). She only trusts a few people in the entire world (which I am lucky to be included in). There wasn't a single thing she wouldn't do for the Flock, okay… she might not give her chocolate chip cookies away, but other than that, she'd do anything. She was beautiful; with her brownish hair with blond highlights, her chocolate colored eyes, her beautiful wings. She had the most amazing smile. She had the most adorable laugh. She was the leader of the Flock, of the six bird-kids. She was amazing. She was Max.

And I didn't know if Max would be able to pull through this time, no matter how strong she is. I felt a little comforted by remembering all the things Max had made it through. But I didn't know if she was going able to pull through this time. Because this time was different. Different because it was her DNA mutating and changing her. Different because she didn't have any idea of what was going on because of her whole "burying her conscious and subconscious mind" thing. Different because no matter how strong Max was, she wouldn't be able to fight it.

Yes, this situation was different. Definitely different. And that scared me. It scared me because she-we- hadn't made it through other situations before that were pretty much the same. We didn't know what to do. It wasn't like fighting Erasers where you knew where to hit them where it hurt, or the Flyboys where you knew where to hit them where it would do the most damage (usually deactivate or blow up). And Max was all alone on this one. There wasn't anyone else who could help her. I couldn't help her. And it was killing me. And I didn't know what I would do if Max didn't make it. And that scared me even more- the thought of Max not making though this transformation, dying now after everything we've been through. I guess that's irony for you.

I was still sitting, but I but my elbows on my knees and rested my chin in my hands. For some reason, I started to pray. I don't know why, but I did. I remembered when we hid in that church in New York. It was so peaceful, so beautiful. So unlike our lives...we didn't seem to belong there.

I didn't really pray to God that time. Well not as much as I was now. I kept praying, over and over, in my head. _Please let Max be okay. Please. Cut us just this one little break. We need Max. _I_ need Max. Please, God, let Max be okay. Because I don't know what I'd do without her._

I repeated that over and over in my head. It soon became like a mantra. I don't know how long or how many times I repeated that in my head. But I stopped as soon as I heard Angel stop crying softly to herself and look at the doorway, with a look of concentration on her face. Then Iggy swung his eyes to the door (how he did that, I have no clue). I realized that somebody was coming.

I waited for Angel to tell me who was coming. And what she read in that person's mind that was so interesting (I didn't even think of scolding her about reading other people's minds). Was it news about Max? Did Carlisle think of something or figure something out? I waited anxiously for a few seconds (literally) when Alice walked into the room.

**Evil cliffy! Sorry, but this chapter is already _way _longer than I planned it to be. I hope it wasn't boring. I started out writing what Fang was thinking about everything, and I didn't realize I hadn't gotten to four pages on Word. I'm not going to promise that the next chapter will hold answers becasue I pretty much am writing on a whim. I have many ideas and one day (hopefully soon) when I'm in the mood I'll start writing chapter sixteen (those of you that write too probably know the feeling). And I'm also sorry for not posting this sooner. I had this all written out a week or so ago but never uploaded it. I had surgery last Tuesday, so this has been the first chance I have had to get on a computer and upload this chapter. So sorry for the delay! Anyway, I hope you liked it. Please let me know what you think! Input is always appreciated!!! Thanks!**

**Best wishes,**

**~Amanda**

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**Random Quotes/Smiles of the Day :D**

"A Minneapolis company has come out with a credit card sized shotgun that fits into your wallet. The inventor said he invented it to give people a sense of security. Oh, yeah, what makes you more secure than sitting on your shotgun? Now how does this work? What's the first thing a thief takes? Your wallet. Oh, and now he's got your gun too!" _~I found this somewhere online; I don't remember where, but I thought it was funny. I don't know if it's true, though._


	16. Three Days

**Okay, sorry everyone for such a long wait. I'm not going to bore you with my excuses (very legitimate excuses, mind you) since I know you're looking forward to this chapter. First though, that bothersome disclaimer. I, ironyheartsap, hereby do solemnly swear that I do not own Maximum Ride or Twilight. Okay, now that I have that covered... ON WITH THE STORY!

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Chapter Sixteen: Three Days

_Fang's POV_

Three days. That's how long we have waited so far. Three agonizingly long days. And we still don't know crap about Max and her "condition"! And Max's Voice? Well he, or she, hasn't bothered to come by and chat at all. I have heard nothing from Max's Voice since our first conversation.

Alice had said that Max would wake up, so to speak, in three more days. We trusted her judgement. After all, Alice can see into the future. I definitely call that a reason to trust her. Besides, what other choice did we have? Accept the fact that Max was stuck in something like coma? That she might never wake up? That she would be gone, forever?

No, none of us could accept that. And when Alice told us that Max would wake up in three days... well that gave us, it gave _me_, since I'm now the leader, a perfect reason to stay with the Cullen's. It gave us hope. Because without Alice's vision, I'm not sure if any of us would have made it this far.

But now it was the third day. Actually, it was almost the fourth day. And Max was still in that coma, or whatever it is. Now we were all doubting what Alice had said. _Three days. _Well it _has _been three days now. We were all exhausted. I don't think any of the Flock had gotten much sleep in. Actually, I don't think I slept at _all_. I was pretty tired now that I think about it. And that wasn't good. If we were attacked, particularly by our vampire hosts, I would be weaker than usual. I knew I was only staying awake because my body was running purely on adrenaline. But there was no way in hell that I was going to sleep. No, not now, when Max could wake up anytime now.

I glanced around the room. The Flock and I were still in the same room, the room where Max was lying on the same comfortable looking bed. The rest of the Flock were scattered throughout the room. Angel was on the other side of me, gently holding Max's limp hand. Angel's eyes were red and puffy from crying. So were Nudge's. Gazzy's eyes showed signs that he had been crying recently, but of course he was trying to stay strong. Even Iggy's sightless eyes showed signs that he had been trying to hold back tears. And I could only imagine what I looked like- bloodshot eyes from staying awake for the last three days but still had their hard gaze to them.

God, we were a wreck. We looked worse than we ever had before; even worse than we had looked after being stuck in the School and experimented on, worse than those close-call battles with the School's newest creation, worse than that whole incident in Antarctica and Florida, worse than when Angel was kidnapped and we had to leave our home... worse than anything that has happened to us before.

I felt guilty- I was Max's second in command, meaning I was the leader when Max was otherwise incapable. I should have been taking care of the Flock. But instead I had sat in the same position in the same chair for three days wallowing by myself. I hadn't really thought about the rest of the Flock that much. Yeah, there was a stray thought here and there. But I didn't pay them any attention. I didn't see that they needed me.

"This is stupid!" Iggy exclaimed. I looked up and saw him kick a garbage basket all the way across the room. It was creepy how Iggy was able to locate and kick that garbage basket head on even though he was blind. I stood up, placing my hand on Iggy's shoulder.

"Calm down, Iggy," I said quietly. Iggy swerved his head towards me.

"Calm down?! _Calm down?!_ How am I supposed to calm down, Fang? We might as well give up, Fang! Max isn't going to wake up! Her heart is barely beating anymore!" Iggy shouted. I was taken back. Never before had I seen Iggy this upset. I heard Angel and Nudge starting to sob in the background. Great, this what I needed to put the whipped cream, cherries, and nuts on the sundae; Iggy going off on a hysteric fit making everyone cry. "And it's been three days! Actually, it's almost _four_ days! That fortune teller was _wrong_, Fang! And we might as well get used to it!"

"Iggy, _cut it out_," I told him, my voice sounding hard and strange. Iggy immediately took a step back. I was surprised at the venom in my words; I hadn't meant to _yell_ at Iggy in the manner I did. It was the anger in me that came out. I was mad at Iggy for saying all those things. No, I wasn't really mad at Iggy. He was just under as much stress as all of us and it was eating at him. Apparently it was eating at me too. "I'm sorry Iggy," I quietly apologized. Iggy gave a small nod, showing that he had accepted my apology.

"I'm gonna go for a walk," Iggy murmured as he headed for the door. Part of me wanted to go to Iggy, but I decided that wasn't a really good idea. Iggy needed some time alone. I think we all did. But none of us would leave Max for any long period of time. So instead I turned to the little ones; Angel and Nudge openly sobbing and Gazzy trying not to cry. I decided I would try and comfort them; they needed me more than Iggy did right now. But I would go and look for Iggy in awhile if he wasn't back.

I sat down in front of Angel, Gazzy, and Nudge who were all huddled together. "Shh," I told them. "It's okay. Iggy's just... upset," I said, struggling for the right words. "He didn't mean anything he said," I added. That seemed to help. The tears weren't pouring down as fast as they were. Maybe I'm not all that bad at this comforting stuff after all.

"A-a-are y-you guys going to break up again?" Angel asked stuttering with tears streaming down her face. I blinked in surprise. _Break up again?_ At first I wasn't sure what Angel meant, and then I realized she was referring to the event when Max and "her Flock" went to Europe to destroy the Itex facilities and me and "my Flock" went to California to spread the word about Itex. Once I figured out what Angel meant, I was appalled.

"Of course we're not going to split up," I told Angel with the same type of _that's final_ voice that Max uses. Angel, Nudge, and Gazzy all nodded. The waterworks started to slow down even further. Good; apparently I was doing something right.

"Max is going to wake up, right Fang?" Gazzy asked me, his eyes wide, waiting for the answer I know he wanted to hear. He wanted me to tell him that everything was going to be okay. That we'd make it through this somehow. That Max would wake up. That we'd be the six bird kids again; the Flock. But I couldn't give Gazzy, or any of them, that. Because I didn't know. Heck, Max's Voice didn't even know! And Max's Voice was inside her mind!

"I hope so, Nudge," I said softly, not looking into either of the three youngest Flock member's eyes. "I hope so."

"Is it enough to hope?" Nudge asked. Once again today I was surprised. I looked at Nudge. I noticed that she's grown a lot lately. Nudge wasn't the cute little girl she was before. She was turning into a "young woman" as the cliche goes. And that childhood innocence of hers was starting to dissipate (well as much childhood innocence that a kid with wings who's be experimented on and chased throughout the world and captured and almost sold off like some animal and built a car out of "borrowed" broken parts and didn't know where she would sleep next or what she would be able to eat next and have had to fight for her very survival _can_ have).

"I don't know, Nudge," I answered honestly. "But we have to hope." I couldn't go on to explain why we had to hope. It wasn't something I could just simply put into words. Nudge seemed to understand what I meant, though. But she didn't appear very satisfied with my answer.

"Do you know that one poem, Nudge?" I asked. Obviously she didn't know _that one poem_. I went onto explain further, "The one about hope and feathers. If that's the case, we have _a lot_ of hope." I gave Nudge a tiny smile, which she returned. I glanced at Gazzy and Angel. I guess they heard that too because they weren't crying anymore and there was also a tiny smile on their lips.

Out of nowhere, Angel asked me, "Fang, do you think it will help if we talk to Max?"

"What?" I asked, completely confused.

"You know, like people do on TV when somebody's in a coma or really sick. They talk to them and then they get better," Angel further explained. Okay, that was enough of letting Angel watch soap-operas. I was going to tell Angel that those people on TV weren't really sick and that they were just acting, but then I thought what the heck? If talking to Max will make Angel, and possibly the others, feel better, who am I to stop them? I was glad that I had my mind-block up or else Angel would know that the people on TV were just actors like I was going to tell her. Of course I had my mind-block up because of the other mindreader, but it still came in handy for the innocent six-year-old mindreader too.

"I think that's a great idea," I said with a fairly large smile. Who knew that comforting the younger ones took so much smiling? But it was worth it. So I went back to my chair and sat down, listening to Angel talking to Max. And I kept hoping, just as I was sure Angel, Gazzy, and Nudge were too, and maybe even Iggy. For a brief moment, it really did feel like everything was going to be okay.

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**Okay, there it is. I hoped you liked it. Not my best, I know. And most definitely not my longest. I was going to wait until I had a chance to complete the chapter the way I had in mind, but I wanted to get Chapter Sixteen out now since I haven't updated in awhile. The next chapter should hopefully be longer. And it will be in Bella's POV, or at least for the most part. Oh, and thank you SO much everybody to has reviewed so far! I am always excited to open my mail and see a review... hint hint. :-D**

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**Random Quotes/Smiles of the Day :D

Hope is the thing with feathers

That perches in the soul,

And sings the tune without the words,

And never stops at all,

And sweetest in the gale is heard;  
And sore must be the storm  
That could abash the little bird  
That kept so many warm.

I've heard it in the chillest land,  
And on the strangest sea;  
Yet, never, in extremity,  
It asked a crumb of me.

_by Emily Dickinson_

**That was the poem that Fang was thinking about. I thought to add it for those of you who haven't heard the poem before. :D**


	17. Inside Max's Head and Into the Fire

**Ski Ski Ski!!! I love Ski!!! For those of you who don't live in Kentucky or, well the in the immeadiate vincinity of Kentucky, won't know what Ski is, I'll explain. It's a carbonized highly caffinated drink that's a cross between Mountain Dew and Squirt. Or just a mort citriusy Mountain Dew. It's good, really good. Addictingly good. But I digress. Here's that annoying disclaimer: I don't own Maximum Ride or Twilight. Short and simple today, no sarcasm. Okay, now for the four best words to read on FanFiction: ON WITH THE STORY!!!**

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Chapter Seventeen: Inside Max's Mind and Into the Fire

_Max's POV_

I found myself standing up in some strange place. The ground was hazy. The haze went up to about my chest. It was like something you'd see in a horror movie or a swamp or something. Whatever it was, it was creepy. The ground beneath my feet was flat and solid. Not muddy and wet and no hills or difference in elevation. So obviously I wasn't in a swamp. I tore my gaze from the creepy haze and looked around. I couldn't see anything. Well I could; it's not like I was blind like Iggy. It's just that all I saw was white. I took a moment to ponder the irony of the situation: I really disliked the color white after that whole incident in Antarctica. I was completely surrounded by white. There was no sky, no ceiling, no anything. And I had completely no idea where I was.

I gathered my bearings, well as much as I could when I was in some weird place with creepy haze and full of white. Then I started thinking about how I had gotten here, wherever here is. What did I last remember? Let's see; I remember meeting the Cullen's, learning about the whole vampire DNA thing, then I had that massive brain attack, and then the Voice came for a visit... What was it that the Voice had told me? I was quickly changing into a vampire. Well I had already known that. Doctor Cullen had told us that when he took a look at my DNA when Fang took me to the hospital during a brain attack. I closed my eyes for a moment. What else did the Voice tell me? Various memories of conversations with the Voice ran quickly through my head. No, no; none of those were it. I shook my head in frustration. _Why couldn't I remember?_

Since I couldn't remember what the Voice had last said to me, I decided to take a look around. Maybe there was another color somewhere around here. Then I thought of the Flock. God, how could I have forgotten them? Even for just a tiny moment? They were my friends, my family, my _life. _And I had forgotten about them.

"Fang?" I called out. It was odd, my voice seemed to just carry on forever. It didn't even echo. What sort of place doesn't even produce an _echo_? I waited, listening for something, for anything. There was no response.

"Iggy? Nudge? Gazzy? Angel?" I cried out. Where was I? And more importantly, where were the Flock? Were they stuck in this dreary place too?

"Total?" I even added, desperate to hear somebody else's voice, even if it was the mutant flying dog who complained too much. There was still no response. I was alone here, wherever here is.

Then all of the sudden I remembered. I remembered what the Voice had told me. What I did. I had buried my mind so I would have a better chance of surviving the transformation with my mind intact. Good, now we're getting somewhere. I was trying to "bury my mind" or whatever and then somehow ended up here. [note the sarcasm] I don't even have a freakin' clue where "here" was anyway!

I tried to calm myself down. I absolutely _hated _it when I had no idea where I was or how I got there and when I didn't know where the Flock was. After taking a few deep breaths, I started to think things through a little more. I went through what I knew and what I didn't know. After going through all that, I came to the conclusion that somehow I had buried my mind and that's where I was. It sounded crazy, but I could think of no other logical answer. So I was in my mind. Hmm. That's definitely something new. And I didn't think that my mind would be so, well, _white. _

I started to wander around what I assumed was my mind. Wow. That was a weird statement, even by _my_ standards; which you all know is saying something. I had no idea which direction to go in. It appears that inside my mind my uncanny directional skills thanks to the Whitecoats didn't work. There didn't seem to be a north, east, south, or west. Just haze and white.

I picked a direction and continued walking through my mind, or wherever I was. I don't know how long I walked. At times it felt like days and at other times it felt like just minutes. Time had no meaning here, like it didn't exist but just a figment of my imagination. Weird again, 'cause my imagination would be in my mind, right? But then again, this whole situation was just weird.

As I walked I thought of all sorts of things; my mom and Ella, Jeb, Ari, even all the despicable things that had happened to me at the School. But I mostly thought of the Flock. Where were they? If I really was inside my mind, would my body still be at the Cullen's in the same place I was in? Or did my body disappear? I wondered if the Flock thought I was dead. I really hoped not- if I ever got out of here I didn't want to wake up in buried underground with no oxygen, dying there for real after all the other death-defying experiences I've had. That would definitely be irony for you. I stopped thinking about where I was- or rather where my _body_ was and thought about how the Flock was holding up. I had already wondered if they thought I was dead. If they did, did they move on? Did they leave the Cullen's? Where would they go, then? Would they continue on my "mission" to save the world for me? Or would they find a nice little island in the middle of nowhere like Fang wanted to many times before and stay there?

After thinking that, I realized that Fang was in charge now. He was my second-in-command, my right hand man. Yeah, I could be impulsive. Okay, I was very impulsive. I did and said things without thinking it through all the way. But when it came to big decisions, big choices, I always wanted Fang's opinion. And most of the time I didn't have to ask. Fang would say something that told me he was onboard with the plan or he'd make some expression that told me he thought I was doing the right thing, or that I was the leader and it was my problem not his. But one of the two. Now since I was inside my mind or something Fang was the leader. He would be the one to make all the decisions. It pained me to think that I wasn't the leader anymore, that I wasn't even able to talk to the Flock or anything. But I was comforted by the fact that it was Fang that took my place. I trusted him and his judgement completely and had no doubt that he would be a great leader for the Flock.

I tried to divert my thoughts from all what was going on with the Flock in the outside world. I thought about when I had eaten last. Surprisingly, I wasn't hungry. Maybe I didn't need to eat inside my mind. But I knew I ate last at the Cullen's. I had no clue how long it had been though, since like I said time didn't really seem to exist here- no clocks ticking or other rhythms that I could count with certainty. Wait- _no rhythms_. None, nada, zilch. And correct me if I'm wrong, your body has natural rhythms (I wasn't counting my breathing since it wasn't exactly even). What the hell happened to my heart beating?!

I stopped dead in my tracks- oh I really, really, _really_ hope that the "dead" part wasn't literal. I placed my hand to my chest, hoping to feel my heart beating at its usual pace. Nothing. I put my right thumb on the bottom of my left wrist and my right forefinger on the top of my wrist, trying to check for a pulse. Nothing. I tried checking my right hand. No pulse there either. I put my first two fingers on my neck where the jugular vein was. Still nothing. It seemed like I didn't have a heartbeat. But how the hell was that possible?!

Once again, I tried to calm myself down. I reminded myself that I was inside my mind. And who knows what happens inside ones mind? In those doors deep inside the completely deserted maze covered with dust and cobwebs that never have had a visitor? Anything could happen here, I suppose. I briefly thought of what happens when you're outside of the deep, dark corners of your mind and inside your body, back to the outside world. The mind could play tricks on you even then. Illusions, sensations, sounds... different things that aren't actually there, that aren't real, but seem completely real to you. (And I'm not talking from experience... well not really.)

I dismissed the fact that my heart wasn't beating as best as I could and started to move on. I walked again for what would once seem like just a minute and then feel like days. Eventually or quickly I saw something in the distance. Colors. Colors besides freakin' white. The were red, orange, and yellow. Now and then I'd see a hint of blue or purple. Red, orange, and yellow with occasional blue and purple. The color of fire. But was it a real fire or just some trick? Well there was only one way to find out.

I started towards the colors. As I got nearer, I saw that there wasn't just the red, orange, yellow, purple, and blue. There was some brilliant shade of silver. I walked right up to the silver. It was liquidy; the silver seemed to move all around. The liquidy silver went up as far as I could look up. I realized it was like a curtain. This liquidy silver seemed to keep the red, orange, yellow, blue, and purple at bay. I watched in awe as I looked at the chaos beyond the silver curtain. The red, orange, yellow, blue and purple took up an endless assault upon the silver curtain. Amazingly, they couldn't get pass this liquidy silver curtain. It was like a forcefield that you would see on some science fiction movie or show.

Then I made one of my impulsive decisions. I tentatively put my hands towards the silver curtain. It felt like cool, thick water flowing through my hand. No, that description disgraced this magnificent silver curtain-forcefield. I swished my hands around and felt a tiny smile on my lips. This was definitely one of those amazing things I've experienced; and coming from a person who can actually _fly_ that's saying something.

I decided to see if I could get past the silver curtain. It seemed like it was only a few inches thick. So I pushed my right arm further into the silver curtain until it was almost at my elbows. Then I stopped. My hand had made it to the other side of the silver curtain; the chaotic side with the colors of fire thrashing against the silver curtain. And I realized it really was fire, or at least a very good illusion of it.

My entire hand was burning. I think I screamed out in pain, but I couldn't hear myself. I was too concentrated on the pain. The burning. I started taking quick, shallow breaths. I tried to control myself, but it was difficult. The pain was so intense. Luckily it was only in my right hand in the fire. I didn't think I'd be able to cope if my whole body was in that infernal fire.

All of the sudden I felt my body being pulled further and further into the fire. It had already moved an inch or two beyond my wrist before I realized what was going on. Then I had no choice but to control myself, to control my movements. Because if I didn't, I would be pulled into that fire full of agonizing pain. I tried my best to ignore the pain- a hopeless feat. But luckily from all my years of being put in pain I had developed a fairly high pain tolerance. _Pain is only a message, _ I told myself. _A very freakin' annoying message, but just a message._ I kept repeating that in my head like a mantra (well at least the first part). Then I took every ounce of strength I had and tried to struggle against the force pulling me into the fire.

At first it seemed like the fire was winning; I was just being pulled further and further into the fire. And the pain increased even more, if that was even possible. Then, well I was pretty sure I was going crazy. Hearing voices in a desolate place would make one crazy, right? Thought so. Great, not only am I stuck inside my mind or something and being pulled into a wall of fire, very painful fire, I was also hearing voices.

I tried to ignore the voices. That didn't work. And from wasting too much concentration on ignoring the voices that weren't there, I was pulled even further into the fire. My entire right arm up to just below my shoulder was now immersed in that agonizing fire. _Don't think of the pain, Max,_ I told myself. But it was impossible _not_ to think of the pain, the fire that was tearing apart every fire of my being. And, for the first time in my life, I truly began to loose hope. Yes, I had been put in bad situations before, but I always had some sort of plan- even it was just "escape". But I had no plan this time. I was in my freakin' mind being pulled into fire for crying out loud!

There was another difference, too. In all those horrible situations I had been put in, I wasn't alone. I had the Flock with me. And I had to be strong for them. The thought of the Flock made my non-beating heart wrench. Could I just give up now, after everything we've been through together?

Right after questioned myself if I could just give up, or more importantly give up on the Flock; I recognized the voices. One by one I was able to associate them with the people they belonged to. They belonged to my family, my friends. My Flock. I heard Angel, Gazzy, and Nudge the most. Iggy said something here and there. And to my surprise, I heard Fang- speaking in almost full sentences. I even heard Total.I wasn't sure if the voices were real or not, but either way they reminded me what I had to do. I had to make it out of this. I had to get back to my Flock. And that gave me strength. I wasn't fighting for myself, I was fighting for my family too. And there was no way in Hell, or that torturous fire, I was going to give up on them.

So with the Flock in mind, I returned to pulling myself out of the fire. And amazingly, I was able to pull myself out. Well not all at once- the process was slow and painful, but I still continued. After what seemed like millennia, I had managed to pull myself completely out of the fire. Surprisingly, my arm was completely intact and there weren't any burns like I had expected there would have been from having my arm in a wall of fire. Actually, there was no trace whatsoever of the trauma I had just endured. After inspecting my arm, I fell to the ground, exhausted.

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**Well I hoped you all liked it. I know it wasn't what I promised, but I got this idea and it was stuck in my head so I unable to write the chapter where Bella listens to the Flock talking to Max (well at least anything I liked). This was a fun chapter to write though, I was able to be very imaginative with it. :D And sorry for the delay, I was "camping". I love nature and all that, but I prefer to appreciate its beauty from inside where there are no bugs or chiggers, whatever they are- and I DO NOT want to know! Anyway, thanks to everyone who has read so far and to everybody who has reviewed. I really appreciate it, as those of you who are also writers would understand. So thanks peoples!**


	18. Bella's Thoughts

**Sorry for the delay, but here it finally is: Chapter Eighteen. I have completely legit excuses (would you like a note from my doctor???) but I'll get straight to the story. This chapter was harder to write, since it's in Bella's POV. I hope you all like it. Please let me know what you think. Anywho, on with the story!!! **

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**Disclaimer:** Same old same old: I don't own Maximum Ride or Twilight.

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**Chapter Eighteen: Bella's Thoughts**

I could never come to regret anything that has happened in my life. Leaving my often foolish and forgetful mom and new step-dad to go and live with my real father in the small, rainy town of Forks. Falling head over heels with the peculiar golden-eyed gorgeous Edward Cullen who was supposedly off limits. Falling irrevocably in love with Edward who happened to be a vampire. Almost killed by the vampire James, which was nothing but a game for him. Almost killed by the fiery Victoria, James's mate, for revenge. My best friend, Jacob, discovering his true lineage and transforming into a werewolf because my boyfriend and the rest of his family of vampires lived nearby. Having to choose between my love Edward and my best friend Jacob. Being met by the Volturi who wanted me killed because I knew their deadly secret. Marrying Edward when I was just out of high school (not to mention the age difference). Becoming pregnant soon after with a part human part vampire child. Letting my unborn child live even though she almost killed me. Having to be turned into a vampire immediately after giving birth to Reneseme. Bringing the wrath of the Volturi to my family because of Reneseme but luckily saved at the last minute. Jacob imprinting on Renesme and nicknaming her Nessie just like the Loch Ness Monster (okay I haven't completely gotten over that part yet). The one thing that I do regret with my entire unbeating heart was being unable to help the Flock- Max, Fang, Iggy, Nudge, Gazzy, and Angel.

From the little time I had spent with them, I could tell that Max meant everything to the Flock. Life was unimaginable without her. Life wouldn't be worth living without her. I knew that the Flock thought all those things and more of Max. Just like what I think of Edward.

Edward was like a drug to me. His presence itself was intoxicating. When he left, I wasn't sure I could go on. The world that he lit up like a thousand candles had all been blown out. And when Edward's life was endangered, I tried to do everything in my power, even my very limitless power while human, to save him. If Edward was gone, then there was no reason for me to continue on living.

So I could relate to the Flock on a small level. Edward was my mate, my lover. Max was their leader. There was a big difference between the two. Although I suspected that Max and Fang may be more than friends.

I thought of the Flock as a whole for a moment. They were all so young to have been through so much. The oldest were only a couple years younger than myself and some other members of my family (well our physical age). Angel, the youngest, seemed just like an innocent little girl. They all had been through more than I can possibly imagine. Their story was appalling to hear. And I knew that they only gave us the basic parts to their story. They spared us from who knows what horrible things that had been done to them. It was truly a miracle that they were alive and well, for the most part, today. And it was even more of a miracle that they still had their sanity.

I knew it was because of Max. Even though she was the oldest of the Flock, she was still so young to have to take on such a role. She was only sixteen and yet she had to worry about the well being of five others. And from what it sounded like Max had been through the most of them all. She actually saved the world, or at least half of it, from an evil corporation bent on taking over the world.

I knew that I wouldn't have been able to make it through what they have. Heck, the only reason I made it through this whole supernatural thing was because of Edward. And I knew that the only reason they made it through everything in one piece was because of Max.

I was knocked out of my thoughts by a tiny little voice talking to an unconscious Max.

_"Max,"_ the tiny voice I was able to identify as Angel said, _"You have to wake up. I need you. You know that we don't know our real parents. But it doesn't really matter anyway, 'cause your like our mom. I bet our real parents aren't half as good as you are. You've done everything for us. You've watched out for me ever since I can remember. You helped me learn to read and write and fly and all that other stuff. I don't even really want to meet my real parents anymore 'cause they might not let Gazzy and I stay with you. I want to stay with you. I want you to stay with us._

_ "And you know how I said I'd be a better leader? I was wrong. I couldn't be a better leader 'cause your the best leader there is. You've done everything for us. You've taken care of all of us when you were still little. You have saved our lives a bunch of times. You taught us how to fight and how to protect ourselves. You helped me learn to fly. You showed me how to be strong._

_ "When I was captured the first time and brought back to the School I kept asking myself 'What would Max do?'. You gave me strength. And I wasn't going to give up 'cause I knew that you'd burst in the place and rescue me. You've saved me a bunch of different times. Like in Antarctica. Remember that? I wanted to catch a penguin but I got lost and trapped in the snow. But you saved me." Angel started to break into tears again. I heard someone try to comfort her, but it didn't do much good._

_ "M-Max,_" another tiny voice spoke who I quickly identified as Gazzy also started talking to Max, _"Angel's right; we need you. A lot. I'm trying to be your little trooper but it's hard since I don't even know if you're there anymore. But I'll still try, I promise. You need to wake up, though. Nothing's the same without you. I don't know what we're gonna do if you..._" Gazzy stopped himself, unable to say the word that was on everyone's mind.

Everyone seemed to be talking to Max now. It was wrong to eavesdrop, I know, but I couldn't help myself. This only confirmed what I already thought: the Flock needed Max more than anything. More than I needed Edward even. I couldn't imagine what would happen if Max did die.

I shook my head. If I was still human I would be crying by now. I could barely stand to think of Max dying. I hadn't realized she had had such an effect on me. Or maybe it was seeing how much the Flock depended on Max. Now much they needed her. How much they loved her.

_"Come on Max!" _Nudge said. She had talked as much as Alice at first, but now she had been quiet._ "We need you. You're like my big sister and best friend and, and my m-mom rolled all into one. You've taken care of me, of all of us. You help make me strong. I wouldn't be strong without you. I can't imagine anything without you. You've been with me for as long as I can remember. You make everything better. If it wasn't for you we would have all been captured and probably killed by now. But you fight for us. You fight for everybody, for people you don't even know. Like Ella. _

_ Remember when you saved her from those guys? You didn't even know her then, she was just a stranger. But you helped her anyways, 'cause that's what you do. You help people. You save people. You fight for people. Even when you don't have to. You coulda given up on the whole 'saving the world' thing, but you didn't. Like when the Director pretended to be your mom and tried to get you to join them, you didn't even though you knew that they'd probably kill you. _

_ "The point is, Max, that I need you. The Flock needs you. And the whole world needs you."_

Iggy was next. _"Max you gotta wake up. Who else is going to keep Gazzy and me out of trouble? I remember when Jeb left us you just automatically assumed his role as leader. You shouldn't have had to do that; you were just a kid. A kid who had to take care of five other kids. You did things that you shouldn't have had to do. Those scum bag scientists should've never messed with us in the first place and that a-hole Jeb shouldn't have fooled us and then left. But you filled Jeb's shoes much better than he ever could. You did a great job taking care of us even though Fang and I are only a few months younger than you._

_ And look at Angel; you pretty much raised her. You did things you shouldn't have had to do. But you did them. And you've never complained about having being the leader and taking care of us and whatnot._

_ Nudge's right; the whole world need's you. But screw the world. We need you._

There was a pause. I wasn't sure if Fang was going to speak. He was the only one who hadn't said anything. I knew though from the little time I spent with Fang that he wasn't much of a talker. But after a long, probably awkward pause, Fang started to speak softly to Max in a tone I could only match to the tone that Edward uses to talk to me.

_ "You're the strongest person I know. You have to be able fight this- whatever this is." _Fang paused, unsure how to continue._ "The rest of the Flock is right, Max. We all need you. More than you could probably ever know."_

Fang's voice dropped to something softer than a whisper. Even I had trouble hearing him with my vampire hearing. _"And I need you." _ Fang for the first time started to stutter. "_M-Max, I wouldn't be able to keep on living without you. You're everything to me. And- and I love you."_

I wiped the nonexistent tears off the corners of my eyes. If I was still human, I would be definitely crying now. Old habits die hard, you know?

It was at that moment that I heard Max's heart that was still slowly beating stop, once and for all. I heard a single tear drop. And a kiss. I imagined it was Fang giving his love one final kiss before goodbyes. But then something unexpected happpened.

"F-Fang?" I heard a voice question, "Is that really you?"

Different explanations ran through my mind. But the only one I could think of was that Max made it. She wasn't dead, she was a vampire. But was that any better for her? Her life could never go back to normal now.

None of that mattered though. Max was alive. She had made it. The Flock didn't have to go through the loss of one of their own today. I ran at full vampire speed to tell the others the good news.

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**Thank you to all my reviewers! (and also the not-reviewing-but-still-reading people) Your reviews make me very happy! Hint hint. (Whoa! Look at that box! How did it get there?!)**

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Random Quotes/Smiles of the Day :D

*If has anything to do with fire, I'm totally in!

*Never do anything you wouldn't want to explain to the paramedics.

*If it weren't for physics and law enforcement, I'd be unstoppable!


	19. Waking Up

Okay a couple of things to take care of first. First of all, sorry for the wait. I have many legit excuses that I'm not going into and my muse was on vacation. :D Second of all, if I ever go a really long time again without updating just review or PM me and I'll try my best to squeeze in a chapter. Remember that **I AM NOT GIVING UP ON THIS STORY EVEN IF I HAVEN'T UPDATED IN AGES**. Okay? Last, thanks to all the people who have put "Maxamorphosis" on their alerts and favorites lists and have reviewed. Especially reviewed. Reviews mean a lot to me. They even get me to update. :D Anywho, just that annoying disclaimer: I don't own anything here except my imagination... and were off!

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**Chapter Nineteen**

**Waking Up**

When I finally started to come to I, I heard a voice. After awhile I was able to identify the voice as Fang's. I wondered what he was saying since I was unable to make out the words. So I concentrated on doing just that. Soon I the words that Fang was speaking sounded less and less like gibberish and more and more like good old English.

_"You're the strongest person I know," _I heard Fang softly say._ "You have to be able fight this- whatever _this_ is. The rest of the Flock is right, Max. We all need you. More than you could probably ever know."_

Wow. I couldn't believe Fang had said that about me. I must not be able to cry because if I was tears would have flooded my eyes by now. I tried to answer back. I couldn't though. I had no control over by body, it was like I was in a coma but aware of everything at the same time.

Maybe it was better I couldn't speak for now. I was still in awe about what Fang had said to me. I hadn't known what I was going to say when I tried to talk to Fang. I just wanted to comfort him, let him know I was alright, since he was worried. We both knew each other too well to know when the other was okay or not, and Fang definitely was _not _okay. So I helplessly listened to Fang go on.

_"And I need you," _Fang admitted to me. I felt my heart wrench. Wait- my heart! I haven't heard of felt it beat ever since I woke up. How was that possible? The I remembered that the Cullen's didn't have heartbeats. Did that mean I was a vampire now? Whatever I was, all my worrying on it had stopped momentarily when I heard Fang speak again.

"_M-Max, I wouldn't be able to keep on living without you," _I heard Fang say, his voice barely a whisper and still getting softer._ "You're everything to me. And- and I love you."_ What! Did Fang just say that he loved me? I felt ecstatic. I knew I loved Fang too. I had for a long time. But neither of us had acted on our feelings until my very existence was put in jeopardy with my DNA mutating and all. Our friendship had meant too much. And the Flock meant too much, we couldn't let them take responsibility for Fang and my actions if we broke up. But now since I was close to dead it didn't really matter anymore.

While I was deep in my thoughts, I felt someone's breath on my face then the soft pressure of a kiss. I knew immediately it was Fang. As Fang's lips touched mine I felt my throat burn. It was nothing compared to the ecstasy I was feeling though. Fang telling me his true feelings; Fang admitting he _loved me_; and Fang kissing me.

It was like a dream. An amazingly wonderful dream. A dream I was afraid I was going to wake up from. Somewhere inside of me I summoned enough energy to ask Fang if I was still dreaming (in so many words).

"F-Fang?" I stuttered, "Is that really you?"

I slowly opened my eyes. I was still unsure whether I was dreaming or not, but I was hoping not. I blinked once. Twice. Three times. Each time letting my eyes adjust to the light. My vision before had been better than any humans, but after my metamorphosis it was even more improved. The only word I could only think of one word to describe what I saw: wow. Everything was crystal clear. It was like I could see everything. Every little fuzzy in the air, every imperfection on the painted walls, every shadow. Everything. I even saw new color.

Time seemed to slow down as I observed all of this. I took a good look at each member of the Flock. I saw things I had previously missed, like a tiny freckle on the upper left side of Gazzy's nose or a stray brown hair in Angel's golden locks. My eyes landed on Fang's last. I realized again how hot Fang really was.

Oh my god, did I just think Fang was _hot_? I guess I did. But I was probably allowed to think of Fang as hot since he pronounced his love for me.

"M-Max?" Fang stuttered, looking surprised to see me. "Are you okay?" I nodded.

"I'm fine, Fang," I said with a smile, "just perfect."

Unfortunately the "perfect" didn't last long. Within moments the room was filled with the Cullen's. In a flash they had taken defensive positions around the Flock. Rosalie stood by Angel, Emmett by Gazzy, Alice in front of Nudge, and Jasper by Iggy. Edward pulled Fang away from me and went towards the middle of the room with Bella, Esme, and Carlisle.

"What the hell is going on?" I demanded, my tone icy. I was confused, why did the Cullen's all look like they were about to attack at a moment's notice?

"Sorry, Max," Carlisle said. The worst of course ran through my head. He was with the School, wasn't he? They were all whitecoats. "You're a new-blood." Carlisle added as if it should explain everything.

"A what?" I asked.

"A new-blood," he repeated and went onto explain, "You are a new born vampire. Your family is in danger with you since you do not know how to control your thirst yet."

"What thirst?" I asked, becoming less tense. Maybe they weren't whitecoats...

Carlisle eyes filled up with curiosity. "Interesting," he said softly and then asked, "Do you not feel the burning sensation?"

"Well, no," I said. "Well there was a little bit like that when I was kissing Fang-" I stopped, finally realizing what I was saying. I had just announced for everybody to hear that I had kissed Fang. I heard Iggy snigger. I expected to blush, but I never felt the heat touch my cheeks.

"You kissed him?" Edward said, astounded.

"Well he kissed me first," I said, "if that makes any difference." Fang gave me an annoyed expression and I just shrugged. The rest of the Cullen's were still as surprised as before. Apparently Fang kissing me instead of me kissing Fang didn't make a difference.

"Hmm..." Calsile said, obviously pondering something, "you might be like Bella here."

"What do you mean?" I asked. "Like Bella how exactly?"

"I was able to control my thirst since the beginning," Bella said. "No body had seen anything like it before. But this..." she let her voice trail off, "I don't know if even I could do that, especially just minutes after waking up."

"Huh," I said just 'cause I felt I should say something.

"Does that mean Max's a super-vampire?" Gazzy asked excitedly.

"We don't know, dear," Eseme said in a grandmotherly like voice.

"Esme's right," Carlisle said, "you could be a danger to your Flock."

"I would never hurt my family," I said, my voice dripping with venom.

"Not intentionally," Jasper added.

"Mistakes do happen, Max," Carlisle said. "It's best that you go hunting before you have anymore interaction with your family."

"Hunting?" I asked. Wow was I in for a big surprise.

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**Okay, there it is. I hope you all enjoyed it. And I know it was a bit cliche. :DI was hoping somebody could give me a good description of Max so I can vamp her up for the next chapter. I would really appreciate it and it would help me with my writing. Oh, and pretty please with cherries and sprinkles and whipped cream do leave a review!**

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Quotes/ Smiles of the Day:D

~I hate you in a cut your head off with a toothbrush kind of way.

~Practice makes perfect but nobody's perfect so why practice?

~That, my children, is called a wall. But beware the wall is solid. Yes be afraid! Be very afraid for we cannot walk through it! Believe me children, for I have attempted this many times before.


	20. First Hunt

**Hey there diligent readers! I have a couple things to say before I get started. First of all, I'm sorry for not updating in awhile. I've just recently got out of the hospital and actually have a spinal fluid leak (which results in horrible headaches that get worse while sitting up). Plus I've had a case of Writer's Block, which luckily is gone for now. Like I've said before, I'm not giving up on this story! Second, I know that there are typos. I haven't had a chance to go through and fix them. I plan on doing it when I'm finished since I don't have much time. It's pretty much your choice, grammatically perfect old chapters or new chapters. And I'm guessing you're going to choose the later. Third of all, thanks to ..XD for being the _only_ person who cared to give me a description of Max's apperance like I asked. So this chapter's partly for you, and partly for my little sis who was my unofficial beta for this chapter since I wasn't sure if it was any good. Maybe I should get a real beta. Anybody interested? Lastly, thanks to everyone who has put me on your alerts or favorites and reviewed. I've gotten over 200 reviews thanks to you guys which is a _great_ feeling. So thanks everyone.**

**And here's that pesky disclaimer: I not-so-solemnly swear that I do not own Maximum Ride or Twilight. :D**

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**Chapter Twenty: First Hunt**

When I got up all of the Cullen's insisted I look into the mirror. I was surprised, even though I realized something must be different otherwise why would they be dragging me to a freakin' mirror?

My tan skin tone was gone. It was now pale, _really _pale. My hair had more blond streaks in it. All my scars (as far as I could tell) were gone. I suppose I was actually quite beautiful. Who knew, Max the Indestructible being beautiful? The only creepy thing was the eyes. They were a deep, dark red.

"They turn to a golden color if you stick to an animal diet in a few months to a year," Edward said, sensing my thoughts (not reading since I threw up a mind block).

Before I could leave, Alice insisted that she "dress" me. I was about the same size as Bella, she said, so I should fit into her clothes. Ick. Alice tried to throw some pretty outrageous things for me to wear, but somehow I convinced Alice that I'd wear just a regular pair of jeans and a t-shirt. I knew she was infamous in the Cullen household for making everyone feel like vampire (or part vampire) Barbie or Ken dolls.

"What are you doing?" Alice shrieked when she saw me cutting the black shirt. I know what you're thinking, Fang's the guy who wears black. But that doesn't mean I can't wear black from time to time too. Besides the shirt was cool with skulls and roses and hearts.

"I need it for my wings," I simply explained. Alice calmed down a bit, but was still obviously distressed about the whole thing. "Sorry," I said, walking out the door. "and thanks," I shouted over my shoulder.

I met Edward, Jasper, and Bella outside. "Are you ready?" they all asked.

"Not exactly," I said, "but let's get this over with."

"There's a nice part of the forest a few miles away from here," Edward explained and took off, followed by the rest of us.

A few miles away we found a lone elk. I sat patiently, waiting to hear how to proceed.

_ Follow your instincts, Max,_ my Voice said.

_ Voice, glad you made it through the transformation. _I said in return, which, strangely, was true.

_ I'm always with you, Max,_ the Voice said.

_ Even in the shower? _I asked teasingly._ Okay, what do you mean "follow my instincts"?_

_ Just relax, pounce, and take a clean bite in the neck. And mostly don't think too much about what you're doing, _the Voice said. At that moment the elk started walking towards me, like the Voice knew it was going to happen. Well it's now or never, I thought.

So I emptied my mind completely about what I was going to do and let my "instincts" take over. I pounced. I made what I _thought_ was a clean cut in the neck. Surprisingly, it actually tasted _good_. I thought it'd taste disgusting, but I was wrong. And the burning sensation began to ebb a bit with each drink I took. Soon I had drank all the blood from the elk.

Everyone was astonished at my first hunt. "How did you do that?" Bella asked what they all were probably thinking.

"Let's just say a little voice in my head gave me the basics," I told them.

"_The_ Voice? The sentient one in your mind?" Edward asked.

"What?" I asked how the H-E-double-toothpicks did they know about the Voice?

"The Voice that you have in your head separate from your conscience that-" Jasper explained.

"I know what your talking about, but how do you know?" I asked. There was no use to deny it, they knew. Besides, the Cullen's were also like my family know since I'm one of them.

"During your transformation," Edward said, "your Voice spoke to Fang to let us know what was happening and how you were doing."

I was shocked, to say the least. "The Voice, _my_ Voice, spoke to Fang while I was unconscious or whatever?"

_Yes, I did, _ the Voice told me. Wow. _Anything else, you want to share, Voice?_ I asked. When the Voice didn't answer I took that as a no.

"So your Voice told you what to do?" Jasper asked.

"Yup," I said, popping the the p. "The Voice told me just to rely on my instincts."

"Even so, that was amazing," Edward said. "I had a difficult time my first hunt."

"I know," I admitted, "the idea of drinking animal blood, or just _blood_ in general was kind of disgusting."

"So how did you do it?" Bella asked, since she had the same problem.

"Like I said, instinct," I told them. Jasper, Edward, and Bella still weren't getting it. "What's the most predominant instinct?" I asked. When no one answered I said, "Survival. Ever since day one I have been fighting to survive. Survive all the experiments done at the School. How fast we could run, how much pain we could tolerate, how long we go without eating, what winds we could fly through... _everything_. Everyday was a fight for survival. It was instinct. So compared to that, this was easy." I don't know where it came from, but it definitely affected the Cullen's. Their faces were full of pity.

"I'm sorry," Bella said, her voice almost breaking.

"It's not your fault," I shrugged. "Could we move on? I'm still thirsty."

"Okay," they agreed. By the time we were done, I had caught three more elk and a mountain lion and the burning sensation was almost completely gone.

Then we started heading back. I knew the way this time, so I lead. I pushed myself to the max (no pun intended) to see how fast I could run. As you know, I was faster than a regular human before. And when my new "vampire" abilities started kicking in, I was faster than anyone in the Flock. Which was a big advantage when I was sparring Fang, remember? Anyway, I found that I was even faster now. I was faster than Edward, who I learned was the fastest of the Cullen's.

"Genetic engineering has its perks," I told them, since then were all, once again, taken back at me. Wait until they learned the rest of our _perks_. I might tell them soon. I trusted the Cullen's now. They were nice people, er, vampires. I was convinced they weren't the bad guys. So maybe after I was reunited with my Flock we would tell them of our powers.

Dismissing my thoughts, I took off again. My eyes took in things even faster than before, which again was saying something. So I had no problem weaving in and out of the trees at high speeds. Within a few minutes, we were back at the Cullen's house.

"Do you think I could see my family now?" I asked Edward since he seemed to be Carlisle's second-in-command from what I've observed.

"I don't see why not, you seem to be able to control your thirst very well, even for a grown vampire, like Bella here," Edward said and Bella beamed. I just smiled. So I would _finally_ see the Flock again. I know it's only been a few days since the transformation began, but it seemed like forever. Oh, and I'd get to see Fang! I was ecstatic. So I walked through the door and headed towards where the Flock were by following their scent...

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**Okay, I hope you liked it. This is sort of short, but I wanted to post the chapter up now. The next chapter hopefully won't take me as long. It will be a little reunion between Max and the rest of the Flock I think. That's about it for now. Please review and let me know what you think of this chapter and/or this story so far. Oh, and if you want me to read and review your fanfic just drop me a line. I've been looking for things to read. Don't forget to leave a review! Thanks in advance!**

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**Random Quotes/Smiles of the Day :D**

"She had an unequalled gift... of squeezing big mistakes into small opportunities."_ ~Henry James_

_ "I didn't jump to conclusions. I took a small step, and conclusions there were." __~Buffy, Buffy the Vampire Slayer_

_ "A fanatic is one who can't change his mind and won't change the subject." __~Winston Churchill_


	21. Family Reunion

**Disclaimer: I own nutin', JP and SM do.**

Chapter Twenty: Family Reunion

"Max!" Angel exclaimed, running into my arms. "You're okay!"

At first I was shocked. Didn't they realize I was dangerous now? That I was faster, stronger, more indestructible than ever before? That I could kill any one of them at a moments notice? That a part of me, no matter how small, literally thirsted for their blood? The Gasman, Nudge, and even Iggy joined in on the hug, Apparently not. That was good, I thought. I was still the same old Maximum Ride to them, even if I was a vampire.

"Of course I'm okay," I told Angel.

Fang came over to me slowly. Was he the only one that knew what I was capable of now? Did he fear me? Would a relationship ever even work between us? Instead of grabbing the others like I thought, Fang came up to me and murmmered, "I'm glad you're okay." I felt like I would blush, but the blood never rose to my cheeks. Can vampires blush? I mean they don't exactly have blood.

"I'm fine," I told him softly. "I've actually never been better."

To my surprise, it was true. I was faster and stronger than ever before. My whole family was together and safe. And Fang and I were together now, even if I was a vampire.

Even though I was now a deadly predator, even more so than before, I had missed my family. It had seemed like ages since I had seen them. Besides, I would never hurt my family.

I slowly and gently kissed Fang, forgetting everybody else in the room. For a moment it seemed like it was just the two of us, completely alone. I felt a slight burning sensation in the back of my throat, like last time, but now I pulled back since I now knew what it was.

As I pulled back, I realized that there were others in the room. I faintly heard Angel, Nudge, and Alice "aw" and Iggy and Emmmett snigger. There was no way denying that I had kissed Fang anymore… not like it really was with those conspiring five girls, Angel, Nudge, Alice, Rosalie, and Bella. But now it was worse since Emmett had witnessed it. I had heard him make snarky comments on everyone else's "relationships". I once again felt like I was going to blush, but the blood never rose to my cheeks.

Fang realized something was wrong, though. "What's the matter, Max?" he asked me. I sighed, realizing there was no way to avoid the question.

"Don't you guys realize that I'm dangerous now?"I asked.

"To be fair, you were dangerous before," Fang replied.

"You know what I mean," I said with a scowl.

"Max, I know that you would never hurt anyone, nonetheless _us_," Fang sincerely said.

"You do realize I'm a vampire, right?" I asked semi-sarcastically.

"You're actually two percent bird too," Fang added.

"So you're not scared even though I literally thirst for your blood?" I boldly asked. The smell of Fang's blood, as the rest of the Flock's blood, was not too strong, but I wanted to make a point. Mission accomplished, I think.

"Max," Fang said, "nothing is going to change because you're a vampire. You are still just plain Max to me."

"And me," Angel quickly said, followed by Nudge, Gazzy, Iggy, and even Total. I smiled. It seems I was worried for nothing. My fear of rejection from the Flock, my family, had been a waste. I was still me to them, even if I was a freak even by mutant-freak standards.

"So, Max," Iggy said breaking the short silence, "on a scale of one to ten how good of a kisser is Fang?"

**So I'm back! Sorry for the long hiatus but I've been in the hospital (yes, again). I actually still am. But I found my lost inspiration and decided to go for it. I'm sorry it's short but I wanted to post this now. Plus, found this chapter sort of challenging to write, but it was better when my muse was fed by therapy (physical and occupational, not the psyche-kind… okay that too. :D) Anyway, hopefully the next chapter will be easier. You'll learn Max's new powers. Anyone have any ideas? (I already know what they are but I'd love to see what you think.) Anyway I hoped you enjoyed this and I'll try to update as soon as I can!**

Random Quotes/ Smiles of the Day :D

~I had a friend once. Then the rope broke and he got away.

~"CHILDHOOD: The rapidly shrinking interval between infancy and first arrest on a drug or weapons charge." _~Rick Bayan, The Cynic's Dictionary_

~Did you hear about the paranoid with low self-esteem? He thought nobody important was out to get him.


	22. A Vision and Talking of Powers

**I'm back! Sorry for the dreadfully long wait. I had lost inspiration for this story for awhile but luckily it came back. So to make it up to you for the long wait, I have a long chapter. Anyway, enough chitchat. On with the story!**

**Disclaimer: It's called FANFICTION for a reason, meaning I am a FAN writing about FICTIONAL stories. I own neither the Twilight saga or the Maximum Ride series. **

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Chapter Twenty-Two:

A Vision and Talking of Powers

The Flock and I were just hanging out in the Cullen's living room. Some television show called _Psych_ was playing but nobody was really watching it. I kept my eyes on Iggy and Gazzy who, engrossed in their own conversation, seemed to be up to something, but then again they almost always were. I did hope that the two pyromaniacs wouldn't do anything too dangerous and the Cullen's house would stay in one piece. Nudge was, well, being Nudge by making talking an Olympic sport. She was rattling on and on about all the amazing clothes Alice had in her closet with Angel adding her two sense every now and then with Total listening with his undivided attention. I was holding hands with Fang only half paying attention, nodding and agreeing when needed.

It was nice and relaxing for a change. Everyone was engaged in their own conversations. I was just basking in the moment. Everything seemed perfect. The entire Flock was safe, warm, well-fed, clean, and most importantly together. We weren't being hunted down at the moment, or at least that I was aware of. I was holding hands with Fang and it didn't feel awkward at all. I even forgot about the fact that I was a vampire now for the moment. It was perfect. I should have known that it wouldn't last long.

"-and then Alice gave me this one shirt that like matches my eyes perfectly by-" I half heard Nudge chatting about clothes and then something weird happened. I felt dizzy and my vision went all blurry.

As it cleared and I realized I was no longer in the same room with the Flock. Instead I was in a large stone chamber filled with inhumanly beautiful people with blood-red eyes all wearing black cloaks. Vampires, I realized immediately.

There were three ornate thrones in the room which three regal looking people sat. One looked bored, another excited, and the last indifferent. A pretty petite looking vampire came up to the thrones with her cloak flowing behind her. She bowed and then whispered something to the excited looking guy in the middle. His expression changed from excitement to surprise immediately.

"Well show her in," he said. At first I wasn't sure if he was talking about me. After all I did sort of just appear out of nowhere and I wasn't exactly following the dress code. Who did come in surprised me however. She was a regular human, and a person I had hoped to never see again. The vampires parted ways so that the woman could make it to the front of the room where the three guys on the thrones sat.

"Director, I hear that you have some crucial information you'd like to share with me," the guy said, "I do hope for your sake that it is worth the disturbance." I noticed the underlying threat against the Director.

"Oh, my lord, I assure you that it is worth it," the Director began. "I believe I have no need to remind you of the experiments done with vampire DNA, correct?"

"I am familiar, continue," the guy in the middle ordered.

"Well as you know it was considered a failure and all of the subjects except one were exterminated, the one who later became known as Maximum Ride." I very nearly gasped at this. I was part of an experiment that played with vampire DNA; although I guess I already knew that. I listened eagerly for any more information.

"Maximum Ride has two percent avian DNA as well as the submissive vampire DNA. She is one of our most successful experiments even with the vampire DNA being recessive."

"Wasn't this Maximum Ride the one who has escaped you time and time again as well as destroy your facilities?" the indifferent looking asked.

"Yes," the Director said with her lips in a thin line.

"I do not see what it has to do with us, then, Director," he asked.

"Well everything, my lord," the Director said. "The alarms in the chip in her brain went off because the vampire DNA is no longer recessive. It is becoming dominant and taking over the human DNA. Soon she will be a full vampire without being bitten."

The three guys on the thrones were speechless. The one in the middle was the first to recompose himself.

"So you are saying that the experiment was a success after all?" he asked. The Director nodded. "Come closer, Director," the middle guy ordered. She tentatively did so and the vampire placed his hand on her forehead and removed it after a moment.

"She tells the truth, brothers," the guy said.

"Do we know her location?" the guy on the left asked.

"Yes," said the middle one with a slightly evil smile. "She is with the _Cullen's_." He spat out the Cullen's name.

The one on the right smiled a creepy smile. "Perfect. Now we have a chance to get back at those wretched Cullen's. We should send part of the guard to collect Maximum Ride."

"Yes, but will the Cullen's give up the girl?" The one on the left asked.

"It doesn't matter," the one in the middle said. "If the Cullen's refuse us one more time, war will start. A war that we will undoubtedly win." The three of them all agreed.

"Good job, Director," the middle one told the Director. "Continue to service us well and you may one day become one of us."

Then all of the sudden I became dizzy and my vision blurred. When it cleared, I realized that I was back in the Cullen's house with a very concerned Flock and vampire family looking at me.

What had just happened? I wondered.

"I don't know," Carlisle said while Fang shrugged. "Your Flock said that all of the sudden you were unresponsive."

"You mean that you didn't see any of it? Those people?" I asked.

"What people? What are you talking about, Max?" Fang asked. I took a deep breath that was unneeded and began to tell everyone what I had seen.

"All of the sudden I had gotten really dizzy and then my vision blurred. When it cleared I found myself in a stone chamber filled with beautiful, red-eyed people. Vampires. In the middle of the room were three thrones, with a vampire sitting on each one of them. A human came and told the one in the middle about a visitor. It ended up being the Director."

"_The_ Director?" Nudge asked. "The one from Germany who caught us, pretended to be your mother, almost killed you, made you fight Omega, the-"

"Yes, Nudge, _that_ Director," I told Nudge, not wanting to go down memory lane. "She had information..." I started, hesitant. "On me. On my vampire DNA."

"Did they say anything else?" Carlisle asked, obviously wanting to know more about the vampire DNA. Ever the scientist, Dr. Cullen.

"Er, yeah," I said, hesitating. It wasn't exactly good news. "They said that they were going to send part of the 'guard' to capture me and would gladly go through yo u to get to me because of revenge or something."

"Oh my," Carlisle said, realizing who I had seen. "It sounds like yo u saw the Volturi," I racked my brain about anything that had to do about the Volturi. Nope, I got nothing. Before I got a chance to ask about the Volturi, Carlisle explained.. "The Volturi are like vampire royalty and the peace-keepers in our world. They ruthlessly punish anyone who goes against their rules. My family and I have recently gotten into trouble with them when Reneseme was born. It came close to a war. It was avoided, but we did humiliate the Volturi. And it hasn't helped that Alice, Bella, and Edward have all refused the invitations to join their guard."

"So how did I see a bunch of people I've never met, yet alone have heard of?"

"I don't know," Carlisle admitted.

_It's one of your many new powers,_ the Voice said.

_What do yo mean? _I asked. _What new powers?_

_ When your DNA changed from human to vampire, it took your biggest strength was turned into your powers., _the Voice told me.

_Powers? As in more than one? _I asked.

_Yes, they all come fro m your biggest strength... your family._

_ Do yo u mean I have all the powers that the rest of the Flock have? _. I wondered.

_Yes, that's why you had a vision of the Director and the Volturi. You used Iggy's power._

_ So it was real, They really are going to send some vampires to capture me and they'd go through the Flock and the Cullens's. _The Voice didn't reply to that, so I realized that he was done talking for now. I came back to reality to see everyone staring at me. Boy was that getting old fast.

"Are you okay, Max?" a few people asked.

"Yeah, it was just the Voice," I said.

"Anything you want to share with the class/" Iggy said sarcastically. I sighed and then began telling everyone what the Voice had told me.

"It turns out that to add to my regular powers,, I now have all of yours," I said.

"What?" Iggy exclaimed.

"Don't worry, you still have yours I just sort of copied them I guess," I reassure Iggy and the rest off the Flock.

"So basically you have a variations of our powers," Fang said.

"What powers?" Carlisle asked. I glanced at Fang and we held a conversation in our eyes. Should we tell them our powers, we both wondered. We both came to a decision. The Cullen's had done a lot for us and seemed trustworthy.

"Each of us have unique powers," I said. "As you know we can all fly, but we can also breathe underwater but there's more. Angel can read minds , talk to people telepathically,, control minds, and change her appearance. Gazzy can mimic any noise, has a messed up digestive system, and can control fire. Nudge can read and control peoples emotions, control technology, and is magnetic. Iggy can hear better than a bat, heal, and has visions. Fang can turn invisible as well as make other people and things, can manipulate the shadows, and change the heat and . I I can move things with my mind, create a some sort of force-field. and slow down time but that takes a lot out of me." The Cullen's were beyond surprised. Carlisle was the first to compose himself.

"That's amazing. All those powers that you have," he said. "And the Voice said that you would have all of their powers?" I only nodded. "This will make you an even bigger target for the Volturi with all of your powers. They will no doubt stop at nothing t o get you."

"Geeze, thanks. Couldn't have sugarcoated it, could you? ," I said sarcastically. "Yet another evil maniac who's out for me."

"Don't worry," Esme said. "We will help you in anyway we can."

"I can't ask you and your family that, Esme," I said. I knew that Carlisle was right. The school and the Volturi would do anything to capture me. I was the only successful experiment with vampire DNA. They would stop at nothing to get me, even if it meant a war with the Cullen's. And I couldn't let that happen.

"You don't have to ask, Max," Esme told me. "You're family now."

"Yeah, Max, you're family. We'll help you out," Emmett said with excitement. "Especially if it means kicking some Volturi a-"

"Emmett! Language!" Esme scolded the full grown man, er vampire.

"Sorry," Emmett said, although he didn't sound too sorry.

"Bella and I will also help," Edward said.

"So will I," Jasper said.

"I will too!" Alice exclaimed.

Rosalie sighed. "I guess I'll help too. But don't get use to it."

Suddenly things were looking up. I had my Flock behind me and the help of my new family, the Cullen's. Maybe, just maybe , i could beat the Volturi and save both of my families.

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**Okay, that's it for now. What do you think of the Flock's powers? It takes place when they're older so I figured that they had time to evolve. I wanted someone to have visions, and I thought Iggy would be perfect for ii;I mean a blind guy that gets visions? Perfect anti-Mary Sue. ****And please, if you're liking it so far, take a moment and write a comment - not even so much for me (though I love it, of course), but for those who might want to try the story later. This is a long-ish story with twenty-plus chapters, and as we go, new people aren't going to want to give it a try if they see that it has a lot of chapters and basically no reviews. As authors, we see the hit counts of how many are reading and that's great, but potential readers don't. So if you like it, this is your chance to let other people know about it. Thanks! Oh, and check out my poll on my profile (I'm curious to see who people think is the most powerful; demigods, aliens., vampires, or witches/wizards). Anyway I;ll try to update again soon, but I have other stories that I've been neglecting and I have ideas for other stories. Therefore the updates will probably be slow like a WIP fic. Thanks for sticking with me so far! And don't forget to leave a review, even if it's to say "This stinks and is a disgrace to writers everywhere". Although I hope you don't say that. :)**

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**Random Quotes/ Smiles :D**

"I'm the kind of person your parents warned you about."

"Stupidity isn't a crime, so you're free to go."

"Your weirdness is creeping my imaginary friend out."


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